Warlock: Corruptor, Traitor, Hero?
by ninetails927
Summary: In a time prior to the events of Warcraft III, not all humans stuck to the normal arts of the Magi as Kel'thuzad himself once did. Some managed to escape and make a life for themselves until the Alliance forced one's hand. As the old saying goes, Not even Orcs have the Fury like a Mother's Scorn. Warlock-class/powerful/OC Strong/Jaina Undecided pairings Rated T maybe M in future
1. Prologue

**Hello to one and all, as this is my second attempt at a story after my last attempt (might restart it, might not. Who knows but don't worry about it). Anyways, I thought that I try my hand at 'adding' to the original plot of Warcraft III first and foremost, mostly starting a bit of a ways prior to its existence to build up something. Hopefully this doesn't turn out so bad. Now for the disclaimer:**

 **I do not own Warcraft; that honor remains solely with Blizzard Entertainment and its branch BattleNet. I am simply retelling the tale from a different perspective and maybe adding a few things here and here that would be later known in WoW. Mix of both words if ya think about it. All I ask that no one flame me on this as I will simply choose to ignore you and destroy any trace of the comment. And I urge other Warcraft-based writer to give their input upon making sure that I am chronologically accurate aside from my own additions. Without further ado, Please enjoy.**

 **Prologue: Mother's Love and Scorn**

In the lands of the Eastern Kingdom, black smoke could be seen coming from a burned village; a contrast to the bright blue sky and green fields as within the burned boundaries were bodies that were mostly charcoaled, but those that had armor were still fresh as blood poured from shredded holes from forged metal. Near the center of the slaughter of mangled soldiers was a lone woman in dark robes, hood down showing her flowing charcoal hair and purple wings coming off of her back but not attached to the clothing. She was currently crying over the mangled remains of a small boy in her arms, blood dripping from her in various places from her injuries during the last battle.

"W-why? Why would they…?" She glared at the remains of blue and a lion's logo on their armor and shield. They had spontaneously showed up and began killing people and setting everything on fire; she tried to help her fellow townspeople by avoiding conflict with the attackers…. But that all changed when they got a hold of her son and killed him outright when he tried to help some other kids escape from the slaughter. They escaped…. But she didn't care about hiding her power after that.

What happened next was a tide-turner that would make even an orc proud. She flung chaotic spells and summoned every known demon under her power, even bringing forth an Infernal. They managed to score a few good hits on her, but she returned that pain in kind, tenfold, by raining hellfire upon them.

In the end, the soldiers were all dead or had escaped, and this left her with nothing to vent her wrath upon. So she just gathered her dead child and cried her heart out, her throat stinging from her screams as her eyes just couldn't stop shedding tears. She knew that her injuries were intense and didn't have anything close by to siphon life from, so she mourned while she still could as her hand traced around his chest…. Only to feel something that shouldn't have been there. It was weak, faint, and almost barely missed, but she knew exactly what it was; a heartbeat. Her little boy was still alive, if only barely.

She looked around on her person for something but couldn't find it, growing frustrated that she was about to lose her son for real this time if she didn't hurry. However, she recalled her knowledge of a Soulstone, and how it was able to keep a person from truly dying as their soul could be stored in a catalyst…. Or by using the soul of another to give them extended life. She personally didn't like the concept of it, but knew that to deny using it would make her an idiot; if it's useful, why ignore it?

So she set out on preparing her final spell as there was little time, for either parent or child, as her demonic minions were gathered around her for her final moments. "You plan to sacrifice yourself for this…. Whelp?" A glare was sent to the Felguard by the Voidwalker. "Hold your tongue, Mal'Krieth, before I tear it out of you myself." Lacking a mouth, his voice still echoed in the air as the succubus was looking down upon the dying child with mild interest. "Say, am I the only one here who thinks that this boy is…?" The Felhound came within inches of the living corps, his tentacle-like limbs 'tasting' the air around his arm before backing away and growled out with joy. "Seems I'm not the only one."

"Silence." The command of the Warlock, from a weak voice, was enough to silence the surrounding demons as the woman worked the final touches on her plan. "From the energy spike caused in a few moments, I know that the Kirin Tor will investigate. All I ask of all of you… is to watch over and help my son, and tell him of the truth of what happened on this day. Not all at once though, I don't want him to go down a vengeful path before he is ready for any future dangers." The Walker stepped forth and bowed to the lady. "You have been very generous with us in the past and have given us a taste of real freedom from the Legion. We shall carry out your final request, in honor of your memory." The others, some more than others, was a bit hesitant with agreeing but decided to humor their Warlock master.

With words done, she gathered the Fel energies provided by the demons, and then began the process of converting her own body and soul into the Soulstone. It was painful, agonizing, and more than anything it was beyond what mortals could comprehend on the borderlines of agony she was going through. But she held on, endured the pain, because she knew that if she did stop for anything short of success, her son was as good as dead. Her wings broke apart as the power supporting them was redirected into the stone forming above the boy's corps, before her own form began to break apart into ashes. She took one last good look upon her little boy, smiling despite the pain she was feeling, and closed her eyes accepting her oblivion….

It wouldn't be even a few minutes later that, as the woman predicted, agents of the Kirin Tor were sighted upon the remains of the village. "This must have been caused by orcs…. They are close enough to possible encampments, so they must have used some demonic incantation while they were still here. Can't believe that they wouldn't have the decency to wait until they were gone." One of the agents called out that he had found a survivor, drawing everyone's attention as they came closer to the slightly pale boy barely breathing. "His signs are weak, but he will live if we take him now." Seeing that they weren't going to be able to find any trace of the source, gave the call to take the boy with them as they warped back to Dalaran.

And so a new tale had begun….

 **There. Sorry if this seems a little on the small side but I promise that It'll start growing when I get going on this; I have most of summer to work on this if nothing else. I'll be working on the Next chapter shortly as I'll need some input on a future scenario. One of which being a love interest between the Warlock OC, Jaina, and/or Sylvanas**


	2. The Initiation

**AN: I have decided that to ensure that the OC and Jaina's fighting capabilities are not so easily lacking, or better yet to prevent a heavy reliability to using magic only, I have decided to commit to a minor Xover with the likes of Dragon Age, particularly the physical fighting style for Mages during DA2. And in case It was never mentioned (looking back now I didn't go into any detail about it so sorry for that, and thanks to Lord22 for pointing it out), the prologue is taking place mid-way into The Second War so that when things pick up, it will be close to the Third war; my focus point.**

 **Also, as a heads up, due to a lack of information about the original map for Dalaran (prior to the city taking flight over Northrend), I'm just going to use the one provided in the Lich King expansion as of further notice; please don't go hater mode on me for this as I have no idea where anything would be otherwise.**

 **Chapter One: Initiation**

Dalaran was the main hub for any and all magic that was discovered and distributed across the Eastern Kingdom, and the origin point of many powerful names with the likes of Antonidas, Mediv, Kel'Thuzad and Kadgar. All forms of magic both known and unknown are created, studied and contained here, both good and evil. The kingdom is currently providing support to defeat the Horde by destroying the portal they had from the other side, and plan to be a place of wisdom and council for future cases as they remain vigilant of the corruption caused by the Horde's Warlocks, as well as studying for possible counter-measures to their corruption.

When they had detected a massive spike of Fel energy, something that prior to it had been deemed as impossible for anything short of a Demon of some sort, they sent agents of the Kirin Tor to investigate the matter… only to come back with nothing but a child barely alive. When the priestess' were overlooking his body's condition, they found that he was almost overflowing with Fel energy, but all tests proved that he was fully human. By the reports of the agents, they hypothesized that he ended up getting caught up in some form of a ritual caused by one of the orc warlocks. They didn't know what exactly occurred but that was beside the point; here they had a powerful source of Fel energy, in the hands of a human child.

Few members of The Six had sentenced him to immediate execution to ensure that any possible dangers to Dalaran would end before they began, but they were outvoted in favor of allowing him to study the Warlock's arts, if not to learn and understand upon how such a magical art worked and any means of countering against such power, then to allow Azeroth a chance to fight fire with fire. Of course, it was only agreed upon with the exception that he would be kept under constant surveillance at ALL times to prevent possible corruption from the demonic energies.

So here they were, a few days later as the boy would finally awaken….

_5:42 A.M., Purple Parlor, The Violet Citadel, Dalaran_

Emerald eyes opened slowly as he awoke to minor pain in his body, and found a roof over his head. _'_ _Wait, where am I?'_ His charcoal-colored hair was moved around as he turned his head to look for a window or something, but the room was closed off aside from a few candles here and there to illuminate the room. Starting to panic a little he sat up and immediately regretted the decision as his back began to sting from whatever pain he barely felt before. Seconds later a young woman came into the room, but the odd thing to him about her was her ears; they were pointed instead of round. "Oh, I'm glad to see that you have awoken. You had us quite worried young man."

He looked on in confusion as she came closer and held her hand up for him to see. "I am a priestess; my job is to heal those who are hurt or sick. I am just going to run another check on you to make sure that you are healing properly, is that alright?" Seeing that he wasn't going to resist gave her the all-clear to close the distance and place the hand on his back, now glowing in a golden/yellow light as she rubbed the spine to help heal him further while making sure that he didn't break anything.

"My name is Falmier Surestar, what is yours?" She spoke out as to try and get him to open up more after silence had pass since asking for permission. The boy looked down in confusion before speaking his name aloud. "Eidolon. I… don't know my last name." The elf looked a little shocked before frowning at how sad it was. "I'm sorry to hear that… you were found in a village that was hit by what appeared to be Horde Orcs. I'm afraid that there were no other survivors." While Eidolon wasn't sure about his last name, he definitely knew that it wasn't orcs that ended up skewering him through with a blade. "Where am I then?" With a soft smile, the High Elf looked out the balcony as she answered. "This is Dalaran, and here we excel in all forms of magic."

Hearing the name of the city made him think about the stories from his mother, about how the place had an out-of-this-world feel and look to it; spires that touched the sky, magic so thick in the air you could almost taste it, and the people were always nice…. Or had an ego the size of a kingdom. Whichever you got lucky to be stuck with really.

There was a knocking on the door that drew both occupants attention before the Elf woman went to answer it, finding an armored man standing outside. "If the boy is awake, then I have been given orders to escort him to The Six post haste." Sighing, the Priestess turned to Eidolon with a small frown before walking over to him. "It would seem that our time for questions are over for now; I'll see to it that you arrive there without further injury to yourself."

_Chamber of Counciling; Top Spire of The Violet Citadel_

Looking around the chamber that showed that it almost blended in with the clouds surrounding the spire ((Pretty much the concept of what was shown during the Warcraft movie First trailer for I swear was less than a whole second)), he was soon standing in the center platform where higher above him were six men. Presuming that these were The Six that he was told about he simply bowed to them so as to not show any hostility before one of the men chuckled a little. "It is nice and refreshing to see such a young man so polite to those that he doesn't know fully of. I believe we made the right decision on this one." One of the other men grumbled something to himself before the men were focusing solely on Eidolon. "Now then, Eidolon was your name yes?" The boy didn't bother questioning how they knew; his mother taught him that when one has mastery of the magical arts down to a degree, they were able to have eyes and ears almost wherever they pleased.

Gaining a nod from the 10-year-old (more info I forgot to mention XO I'm sorry I keep getting scatterbrained every so often), another man continued on. "We offer our condolences for what happened at your home village, but I fear that you bring up more questions than answers; the area surrounding where you were, possibly the heart of the conflict, was heavily infested with Fel energy. Fel energy is what is called the primary source of a very dark magic, where its users are called Warlocks. Now, ever since its discovery from The First War, and our current conflict against the Horde, only Orcs were ever shown to be able to use this Fel energy…. However, we have found an abundance of said energy inside of you. For whatever reason, you are for all intents and purposes a Warlock."

Now they saw real emotion coming from him for the first time; horror in finding out that he was comparable of those horrible creatures that kill and pillage the Eastern Kingdom, and fear at what The Six had chosen as his fate. "Please remain calm, child; even though your body overflows with Fel energy, our healers and mages studying on countering said energy have confirmed that you are pure of its taint. It is because of this that we, The Six, have decided to allow you to delve into the arts of a Warlock." Another man, whom was the one grumbling after Eidolon had arrived, spoke up this time. "However, keep in mind that we do not do this out of charity; with your studies of this dark art, we will be monitoring you at all times and, if you show any signs of falling into corruption, you will be killed without hesitation."

A 4th man gained the scared boy's attention. "Please don't mind him; he was against your continued existence to the bitter end. Now then, getting back on track, alongside your studies we will be using you as a way to find a counter-measure against the Orc Warlock's own corrupt spells and, one day, be able to fight them on the same if not greater footing. With this in mind, we offer you a chance to learn and master the power you possess. As teachers have passed on to their students; we are in control of our own power, not the other way around."

Eidolon for one was shocked silent at this prospect; he would be learning to control this Fel energy with their aid and also be helping them learn how to fight against the Horde all at once. While he was suspicious about the Alliance having destroyed his home, he recalled from his mother that some Warlocks were master manipulators and could take control of a figurehead and cause mass mayhem amongst the Alliance's own ranks. With that in mind, he really didn't know who to trust; but Dalaran was offering sanctuary and a place to become stronger.

"I accept your most generous offer and hope to help in any way that I can."

 **And that puts a wrap into chapter one (officially) and will begin some minor jumps through time in order to focus on the major events/characters that will be taking a part in future events. Now, to make sure that this is officially recognized, there is no distinguished amount of time between The Second and Third War, other than that Warcraft III was (supposedly) 20 years after the first Warcraft game ever came out. So this leaves me with a number of years that would allow the OC to make some friends and form bonds with Jaina and Sylvanas prior to her death as I have officially decide. The reason for this will be explained at a much later time further into the story if I ever get around to there. Aside from that, please leave a (non-flaming) review and/or comment if you can and possibly like and/or favor it (I know I'm pushing on that, but ya know what who cares; you make the final decision in the end).**

 **Until Next Time,**

 **Ninetails927**


	3. Trips Down Memory Lane

**Chapter 2: Trips through Memory Lane**

Ever since his initiation into Dalaran, and by extension the Kirin Tor, Eidolon had begun to learn what little knowledge was uncovered about being a Warlock from the First War and what was discovered through the end of the Second War. Speaking of, Kadgar and his forces were able to successfully shut down the Dark Portal from the other side, which was a loss for all of Dalaran and those that knew him personally. However, before his final hour he had the wisdom to send back to The Six two artifacts that were used in creating even more of the portals; the Skull of Gul'Dan and the Book of Medivh. While even the boy himself was hesitant to go anywhere near the old bones, his interest in the book was what allowed him to skyrocket his research into the Warlocks origin of corrupt power, and studied in ways to either interfere with the power surge and/or destroy it entirely.

However, that idea came to a halt when, following the closing of the Dark Portal, resulted in the Horde losing their will, and strength, to fight on aside from remnants of old warlocks that were quickly eliminated on the spot. As for Medivh's staff, he had almost died when trying to wield the power within; this also resulted in discovering the demon within the powerful artifact and was sealed away until a time came that it could be purged of the demonic presence.

But one of the major moments within the city was where he met his first friend; Jaina Proudmoore

_Trade District_

A now 14 year old Eidolon was studying through the Book of Medivh on his way to have his usual appointment with the Kirin Tor, its knowledge on demons allowing him to gain a deeper understanding of their corrupt power, and the origin of his own. This distraction, however, resulted in him colliding with a blond-haired woman sending the both of them into the ground.

One 19-year-old Jaina Proudmoore, heading over to meet with her mentor Antonidas, was distraught as she had recently returned from her last meet-up with Arthas Menethil, whom had decided that in order to do well in their respective studies, their relationship would come to a halt. She knew that logically speaking it was the right decision, but the ache in her heart wouldn't listen, and took it literally. The best she could think of to stop the pain was to bury herself in her studies, and Antonidas would help with just that. Unfortunately, she was thinking far too much and ended up losing her sense of awareness by crashing into a boy, sending them both onto the ground.

Eidolon was quick to react as he got himself up and offered a hand to the girl. "I'm sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going." She got a good look at his charcoal-black hair down to his shoulders and his emerald green eyes that seemed to have an ethereal glow to them. He was having a similar action as he looked over her long blond hair, blue eyes and figure barely hidden by the cloak. What, can you blame him for looking at a pretty girl every so often? "No, please it's alright. No harm done." Taking the hand offered, Jaina was pulled upright again as their examination of the other was cut off by their eyes making contact, turning away in synch with a light blush on their cheeks.

 _'_ _Why am I blushing for? Its not like I haven't spoken to a girl before, but the priestesses aren't the same age as I am…'_

 _'_ _Well he's nice isn't he? Wait, get a grip Jaina; you like…. Well, used to like, Arthas. But he said it himself that this was for the best, so why do I still feel this aching pain in my chest?'_

Regardless of their personal issues, they refocused on each other and gave a smile. "Still, should have seen where I was going. My name is Eidolon." Jaina heard that name being spoken around amongst some of the Kirin Tor members but nothing was solid. Then again, she didn't focus on the gossip like most people would and left it in the back of her mind. What she did notice however, was the book that was next to her foot. "Wait, is this…?" Waving her hand, the book was lifted off the ground front cover up…. and looked rather shocked at what it truly was. "You're reading THE Book of Medivh?!"

He almost regretted answering her question, as she was soon shooting off questions faster than an arcane barrage. 30 seconds in later and he had to place a hand over her mouth to make her stop, which it did once she realized what she was doing and turned away blushing. "Sorry, it's just that a tome from one of the greatest mages of his time is something that Dalaran had been missing for quite a while. I'm glad that its back in the city, but I'm also rather curious about why you have it."

"That kind of information is strictly on a need-to-know basis, Jaina." An older man with his white long beard and a cap covering his mostly bald head, along with the regaled blue cape walked up to them, someone whom Jaina recognized immediately. "Master Antonidas." Eidolon bowed to the man as Jaina did before the man spoke up. "I believe we are burning daylight on this meager conversation. Come along Jaina and we shall continue your training." Jaina frowned at the concept of having her chat with the young man interrupted but complied anyways, until Eidolon stopped her for a moment. "Hey, sorry our time got cut short. Maybe we can talk some more later?"

Smiling, the blond nodded her head then began running after her mentor, feeling a little lighter than she did earlier that day.

From then on, they got around to meeting with one another frequently when neither of them were studying, getting to know each other as time passed. She learned that his family and home was destroyed, with him being the sole survivor, and finally discovered on why the Kirin Tor spoke of him when he wasn't present; he was a Warlock, and that he was actually being helpful with creating countermeasures against some of their spells as he learned of them. He learned that Jaina came from a prestigious family that was becoming more and more distant as time passed, and that she was seeing Arthas, the Crown Prince, until the day they met. Eidolon for one found it rather stupid that they could give up on something like this so easily, and felt like giving the slightly older man a piece of his mind when he could one day if he so much as met him. Jaina simply laughed aloud from that, but the statement and the feeling behind it lifted a great weight from her chest; perhaps she could move on from Arthas if Eidolon kept his nice streak going. Then again, it was good to have a friend to talk to, as much as she didn't want to talk to Antonidas of all people about her personal plight.

Speaking of, the old man could tell that, since the day that the two met, that she was picking up on her magical training a lot quicker and even stronger than predicted. Maybe it was because she had a friend within Dalaran, or maybe because she was getting over her crush with the Crown Prince; whatever the case may be, the young Warlock trainee was getting through her better then he could. While he wouldn't admit it, he was thankful for the young man being there where he could not.

It was a few weeks later that Eidolon was informed that, as an interest to the security to the Kirin Tor, he would temporarily be training at Silvermoon City. This would be the first time he had gone outside of the city for any reason, and that his escort would be from the capital itself.

This was how he met the Ranger-General, Sylvanas Windrunner

_Main Gates of Dalaran_

Eidolon sighed slightly as he stood upon the outskirts of the capital that took him in less than 5 years ago, having changed much since he arrived. His charcoal-black hair was cut above his neck as his attire had changed; instead of the standard-issued uniform for most of the mages here, his consisted of a dark green long-sleeve shirt as well as black pants, ending in leather shoes with metal plating on the outside for protection. On his chest was the Kirin Tor banner, but the colors were altered to have the symbol green and the rest of it black; this is what allowed him to stand out amongst the other members of the faction. He always had one of two items on his person; The Book of Medivh and a staff to help channel the Fel energies that he replaces every month.

His ears perked up at the sound of movement, grabbing the staff and swinging it to his left to hear the sound of metal on metal. Immediately after the ringing noise was made he back off to look at the attacker… and he almost stumbled upon how the woman was dressed.

She had armor that covered over her breasts along with the cloak, but it did nothing to hide the midriff of her tone stomach until her leather/armor-plated pants came into view along with boots that match the pants. Her hands were covered in gloves, that were currently also wielding a long dagger where his staff hit it, and nothing covered her elbow up until the blue shoulder pads with feathers decorated under them. Completing the set was her hood that almost hid her blond hair and pointed ears going through the slits made for them, and her glowing blue eyes, which currently held surprise and amusement.

"Well, at least it's nice to know that I won't be guarding some weakling." Her voice held superiority as she sheathed her daggers. "Not wanting to be rude here, but WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?!" You can imagine the justification in Eidolon's voice as he was waving his staff at her from a distance, despite her being unarmed now. "If you must know, I personally find having your kind of magic anywhere near the Sunwell to be a danger to my people. As Ranger-General of Silvermoon, it is my duty to protect its walls and its people."

The young Warlock narrowed his eyes at Sylvanas as he growled out something while making sure his bag nearby was on his person. "Great, another judgmental idiot to deal with." With her good hearing she snapped her head back towards him. "What did you just say?" Eidolon ignored the question and stood before her. "Well? We're not getting to Silvermoon by standing around here, now are we?"

_Several days into the journey to Silvermoon_

Sylvanas Windrunner was many things; vigilant, patient, a leader to her home's army, and overall determined to protect her people. But having to deal with the constant silence and dodging of questions from her charge was starting to piss her off. He had the nerve to insult her within hearing distance and not explain himself. The Nerve! Having enough of this farce, she stopped and turned around to face him, a scowl present on her features. "Alright this has gone on long enough!"

Of course before she could get another word out, a dozen men dressed like highwaymen jumped out of the bushes and trees, effectively surrounding them. The Ranger-General cursed under her breath for having been too distracted from her personal issue with her charge to not notice this coming up; she was supposed to be better than that, but the boy was grating on her nerves. Oh well, at least now she can blow off some steam. "Alright you two, hand over your valuables and we won't hurt you…. Much."

"Ey boss, isn't that lady one of them High Elves?" The men were now focusing on her with lecherous leers as they eyed her up and down like meat. "That she is, George. Alright then; hand over your valuables AND the knife-ear and we won't even touch ya, boy. You look like one of them cowardly mages, must not get a lot of action then, and so young too. You could even have the leftovers once me and my boys here are done. What do ya say?"

Eidolon remained silent throughout the entire one-sided conversation before finally walking past Sylvanas, passing her Medivh's Book. "Hold on to this please, I really don't want to get it, or you, damaged." He continued onward as he pulled out his staff, holding it out before him in both hands. "Alright then, so I've got a few spells and moves I want to try out on a live target. Any volunteers?"

This got a violent reaction from the leader of the gang before motioning to the one named George. "Go get 'em George; he's just a kid." "You got it boss, this won't even take a se-" His body spontaneously caught fire, making him drop to the ground to try and put it out before it became too much and died from the pain. They all looked horrified as they saw no fireball being formed to give them any warning, looking back to the kid in fear as he put his hand down from casting it. "That worked better than I thought; burns away the victim, but it causes more pain than physical damage." He took a wiff of the air from a nearby breeze and wrinkled his nose in disgust. "I take that back; 3rd degree burns at least.

This agitated the men even more as a group of 4 ran at him before the boy launched what looked like a seed from his hand into the head of the group, making said highwayman claw at his chest in agony which made his fellow thieves and cutthroats stop to help him. "Hey, what's the matter with you?" As they tore open his shirt, they saw a growing black/green spot on his chest before it exploded outwards, killing the man and hitting the others. They too were soon showing similar pain in their chests before dying from the overload. "Another interesting sample; the initial target suffers from lasting agony and spread the corruption onto others upon death, which causes them too to suffer from the Seed. Seems that it only spreads from the initial target instead of chaining out further. Shame, could have been useful to end an army in one go."

Now they were getting pissed off by this kid who was killing them all like it was nothing. Wasn't he supposed to be a mage like everyone else in Dalaran? If he was, then his spells cause pain and agony instead of just setting them on fire or freezing them to death. "That's it boys; kill him but keep the Elf alive if you can!"

"Ranger-General, please get yourself to some cover. Now." His hand was channeling Fel energy into the staff, giving her the impression that he was going to do an Area Spell and it would be dangerous for her to remain close. She didn't hesitate after that and managed to get herself behind a nearby tree. She was lucky she did as not a second later a wave of fire exploded outward, parting from impacting the tree that kept her from harm's way. The heat was intensive as she had to close her eyes to keep them from drying out. When she felt the firestorm end she looked past her wall of wood and was horrified by the display.

There was enough collateral damage to the area to replace all green there with charcoal black; even the ground still had spider cracks with molten red rock underneath. In the center was Eidolon, but his body had burn patches on his clothes and some on his skin. "Note to self, Hellfire causes self-inflicting damage. Use of technique within a populated area is inadvisable unless a safety ward is made to prevent friendly fire." He looked around him at the charred remains of some of the bandits. "Where's the-?"

Sylvanas felt a knife to her throat and an arm around her stomach, restrained by the gang leader, whom didn't avoid the attack without some damage to himself, but was still combat capable. "ALRIGHT that's enough from you! Put down the staff and walk away or I'll slit her throat wide open like guttin' a fish." He looked to the bandit, seeing that he was serious, and to the hostage, whom was between glaring at the criminal and looking to him with some fear. She's never felt so vulnerable in her entire life, not even when she was taking part of the Second War to stop the Horde from burning down Quel'thalas, and this horrified her to no end. To die like some animal instead of receiving a warriors death, where she could still have some honor in her family name.

Knowing what had to be done, he let the staff fall but still glared at the highwayman as said criminal was moving his free hand to cop a feel of her armored breast. Sylvanas looked in horror before closing her eyes tightly, not wanting to see her body be violated in such a manner.

It took a few seconds before the knife at her neck was removed, confusing the high elf before opening one eye to see said weapon and offending hand gone. Turning around she saw why; the gang leader was on the ground twitching in a seizer-like manner as his veins were now visible on his skin… except that they were now growing black. "Agony, a simple spell that corrupts the body from the inside, causing damage to the one inflicted. It can't kill by itself like Immolation did, but for something like this it'll cause no harm to the hostage." He walked up to the downed criminal and rose his hand to look like it was going to grab him from a distance, before a stream of green light came into it and away from the highwayman.

Said criminal was now shriveling up like a raisin before he was nothing more than skin and bone, making Sylvanas turn away in disgust. She turned to berate her charge for using that 'hellfire' spell or whatever it was and recklessly causing damage to himself… only to find that the burns were gone now, replaced by healthy skin. "How…. How did you heal yourself? I thought Priests and Paladins could heal wounds." He looked to her, his emerald eyes losing a glow he gained somewhere during the battle and answered her, for once. "It's a spell called Drain Life, its original purpose was to remove one's youth to make them age quicker than normal. Well, that's how the Horde does it to replenish their armies so damn quickly; their warlocks drain the youth from the young and make them battle-ready in a matter of minutes… a disgusting thing to do really, and The Six agree with me after they were informed of its purpose."

"So wait, you drained his life force to die of old age?" The soft chuckle that followed her question did not ease her much. "No, because I find that to be too inhumane to commit to a warrior like that. I simply… repurposed the energy flow to heal my injured body first and foremost. Any other excessive life-force leftover is added to my own, so in a way I can almost become immortal. Almost." He regained his staff before continuing down the path, which was soon followed by the slightly angry Ranger-General. "Why would you even consider using such vile spells if you knew what it was for?!" He didn't bother to face her as he answered while walking. "That's because, despite its original purpose, I choose to protect people; Fel energy is just that, energy to be used for a spell. It has no feelings, no emotions, no ulterior motive. It is just a tool to be used, and since I have a lot of it, I fully intend to put it to use in one way or another. Even if it means that I become hated and scorned for it, as long as people are alive to complain about it, then I'll be satisfied."

He finally stopped and turned to her, with a glare that made her freeze. "That's what I was talking about when I made that comment and didn't answer you about it; because you were being a hypocrite like all the others. Not even giving me a chance and say I'm as bad as the Horde, and that REALLY pisses me off to no end."

During the rest of the day and into the night, Sylvanas couldn't stop staring at him the whole way, other than to eat and set up camp for the night, thinking over what she had thought of him. He was right; she had judged him without knowing all of the information, without even talking to him like a normal person, and she hated that part of herself. Her hatred for Warlocks were somewhat justified; she had seen what the Horde was capable of with them, as they did not care if even their own kind was suffering the price for it as they got all the benefits. And she had thought that he was no different from them, that he would use her as he saw fit. If it was the case…. Then he had every reason to leave her to her fate with that Highwayman, who had her at her weakest, to leave her for dead and simply write her off as a sorry casualty, to not warn her of the self-damaging spell that caused collateral damage to everything around him.

Snapping back to reality, she saw that Eidolon was asleep now, which left her alone to her thoughts before speaking out softly. "I don't know if you can hear me, and I hope you don't or I may never hear the end of it. I'm…. sorry, for comparing you to the orc warlocks. I've seen what they can do, what suffering they cause to both friend and foe in and out of the battlefield. And blindly thinking, I labeled you as the same as them. I'm supposed to be better than that, blinded by petty hatred and overthinking everything."

She remained quiet for a bit before continuing. "When that bandit leader had me hostage and was going to…. I felt real fear for the first time, being completely helpless and under the control of another. I may be a noble at home, but I am a warrior first and foremost and such an act of…. Violation is not something I want to be under, Ever. So, as a warrior, my life is forfeit to you for saving me, as I am honor-bound to do so…" She finally gave up talking to herself aloud and turned in for the night,

Completely missing the one eye and smile coming from the Warlock.

_3 weeks later_

Eidolon was standing in front of the gates of Dalaran, as his trip to Silvermoon city had come to an end quicker than he thought it would. They simply had him flare his Fel energy to allow their Rangers to get a feel for what they should be on the lookout for, and then proceeded to be a part of their drills in the form of a game of tag. And when he says tag, he means that he's the one being chased and that if they catch him he was 'dead'. Fortunately none of the Rangers caught him despite knowing where his trail of Fel energy went to. Unfortunately it meant that only Sylvanas Windrunner was the one to 'kill' him. By tackling him. Several times.

It seemed that she had opened up more and become less holier-than-thou over his stay in Silvermoon, as she remained as his chaperone so to speak. Not that she minded apparently, and neither did he. Through the weeks they got to have a casual conversation with each other about other ways to use unconventional methods to protecting people. One example he offered was that, on their way here, he noticed the main bridge that lead to the Inner Gates of Quel'Thalas, and suggested that in the event that the outer gate was breached that the bridge be destroyed to halt if not delay invaders. When she threw a bit if a fit about it, he justified his idea with the concept that cities can be rebuilt, but lives could not. After that, she kept a more open mind to each idea and offered some of her own that she would have ignored in the past.

So here they were, back at Dalaran's gates and about ready to part ways, until Eidolon stopped her for a moment. "Sylvanas… I heard everything." She looked confused for a moment, until her eyes widened in shock from piecing together what he meant and went red as a tomato. "Everything?" He nodded his head, making her slump a bit with a heavy sigh before straightening out and glaring at him. "Alright then so, what will you ask of me? And if you dare ask me to be your-" She was stopped by a blank piece of paper being placed onto her hand that was pointing at him, looking confused before he decided to satisfy her curiosity. "All I want is a friend, and since you won't be here often, I want you to write a letter. In return I'll right back, and you will return the action in kind."

Wait, was he serious? No outlandish or perverted demands or anything like that, just write him a letter? She didn't know whether to feel overjoyed or insulted that he didn't have his way with her. Or maybe he never wanted that, or he wanted something like romance to be real instead of faked…. Her head was hurting from trying to figure him out, but she wouldn't have a friend like him any other way. So she settled for a smile. She opened her mouth to speak before she was cut off again. "And also, I forgive you. If I was in your shoes I probably would act the same way."

Again she was surprised, before she did the most rational thing she could think of; disregarding all forms of formality for a few moment, she pulled him into a hug, hiding some shed tears in his hair as he awkwardly returned the embrace. This was strange for him really, as he's never had this kind of physical contact with a woman outside of his mother before, not even from Jaina or the Priestess'. After a few moments they broke away, letting her wipe away the tears and gather her dignity. "Very well then, if that is your request, then as Ranger-General and a Windrunner-"

"No. I want you to do it because you want to. Because Sylvanas wants to." She stared at him for a few moments before nodding her head and making her way back down the beaten path. "Fare thee well, Warlock." He was surprise that she said the title without the negativity, grinning to himself as he called back. "And to you as well, Ranger-General." Unseen by the boy, the High Elf was holding her own smile as she wandered through the woods. _'_ _At least he didn't say anything about me crying. Maybe he's not like all the others. Eidolon… you intrigue me.'_

Since then he maintained a weekly ritual of keeping in contact with the Ranger-General, talking about almost anything; their busy schedules, the times of trouble they run into, some funny stories they hear or experience, and so on. As more letters were exchanged, however, he was beginning to notice that Jaina too was starting to act weird around him. He never mentioned Sylvanas to her, and vice versa, so he had no idea on what was going on or how to deal with it.

Then again, he had another weird run in with strange characters. Primarily a rather odd gnome girl with blonde hair.

_Trade District, Dalaran_

Eidolon, now 17, had just split from Jaina as she had to head back to Antonidas, as he was just done with physical combat training with a recently acquired mentor named Hawke Amelle, a mage who utilizes both magical and physical combat by using his personally-crafted staff that could take, and deal, a lot of damage and even use his Pyro- and Cryo-based spells in conjunction with it. When he asked if he could learn to fight with more than just his spells, as that could only take him so far, he was directed to Hawke. Although staffs were his preferred choice, he was a jack of all trades kind of guy who could use knives, swords, and even a shield of all things for combat.

Right now he had finished his training with him and hoped to get in touch with Jaina today but that was cut short, so he would have to try tomorrow. Also, he recalled that he needed to deliver his next letter to Sylvanas. So with letter in hand, he placed in the mailbox and just wandered around the city in boredom. However, this was cut short as he felt a pair of eyes on him that made him look around. _'_ _Is this a spy? How did they get past Dalaran's sentry towers?'_ Seeing that nothing was present, he shrugged it off as him being paranoid and continued on, missing the small shadow that followed him by ducking into an alley.

It wasn't even five minutes later that he got that feeling against for the nineteenth time. Getting really annoyed he found an abandoned alley and ran into it. The sudden movement made the stalker give chase before running right into the guy's leg, making the figure fall flat on her rear. "What the…?"

Looking down, he saw that his pursuer was a gnome girl, or woman (he honestly couldn't tell with their height being all the same), shaking her head from the sudden impact, her blonde hair in twin buns and nearly regale robe/armor design. Looking up, her bronze-colored eyes widened in shock before making a run for it. "HEY!" Giving chase, he found that for someone so short, they could duck and evade into almost every nook and cranny, and that it seemed that this wasn't her first time here in the city. Eventually she turned into an alley and…. just disappeared.

"Where could she have…" Seeing that her presence wasn't felt there anymore he sighed before walking along, not noticing the shimmering wall before revealing the gnome panting in exertion. "Wow, kids got good legs. But I really need to be careful next time. I almost got discovered, and that would have left a headache for me and Nozdormu. But why did he ask me to watch over the guy? I'm not getting paid enough to babysit…." With a slight grumble to herself she opened a hole out of thin air, showing a massive cave with a lot of sand and a massive extravagant hourglass inside before walking through it, the portal closing behind her.

He asked around about seeing the gnome girl but it seemed that she didn't exist anywhere, and when he asked the sentries to use their all-seeing looking glass to find her within Dalaran's boundaries, it seemed that she truly didn't exist, making his head scratch at the confusion of it all. Aw well, it didn't matter anymore.

So with the confusion aside, both his studies and training in both arts of the Warlock and physical combat had come along nicely, finding that he preferred a longsword instead. With some augmentations made, he personally crafted a blade simply called 'the Javelin.' Everyone laughed at the ridiculous name that was meant for another type of weapon entirely, he simply huffed in slight anger about it, but he couldn't stay mad at Jaina for finding it funny. And apparently Sylvanas too as she agreed with everyone else on the ridiculousness of the name.

That being said, through the years he had heard word that a band of orcs had destroyed Durnhold Keep, not that he had been there before or even liked the ruler over it. But the odd part about it was that there was no demonic taint other than what little was left, and even more interestingly enough was the method of destroying the fortress; it was done by a lone orc, who willed the earth to consume and destroy the entire structure in mere minutes. That kind of power was what caused fear in the human Alliance, and gave the mages of Dalaran something to think over. It definitely wasn't demonic in origin, otherwise Eidolon would have felt that magnitude of power from Dalaran itself. And it was more…. Pure, than the demonic taint that once held a deathgrip over the orcish horde. No, pure was the wrong word… Primal felt much better to describe it as. And the new Horde leader even spoke of leaving the human Alliance alone if they would do so in kind, along with being granted a place to settle and have as their own or face the likes of which they had never seen before if they decided to attack this new Horde.

Aside from that, it seemed that just recently the Orcish horde gathered all of their forces to Arathi Highlands and, oddly enough, stole Alliance ships and simply sailed out into open waters. From there they just disappeared entirely. While the action alone was odd enough, it at least gave the Alliance some much needed relief. When he wrote of this to Sylvanas, she too had been informed about the odd behavior, but advised that he too remain vigilant, as this action was too random to be a coincidence.

If the orcs fleeing from the Eastern Kingdoms was anything to go on, this was just the beginning. And if one could listen closely, they would hear thunder even on clear blue skies…

The Drums of War thunders once again.

 **Well, I hope that was long enough to satisfy you all for a while. My fingers hurt now from working on this almost constantly. But for what it's worth, I'm just glad to have something out in the open for once and going past the first chapter. And also apologies for the large time-skipping jumps onto each event; minor details will be pointed out from during the jump in future events with key characters.**

 **Anyways, I have officially planted the seeds of ideas and possibilities of the pairings with either Jaina or Sylvanas, or both (not in same room of course that would get anyone killed and I refuse to risk flaming for that kind of crap, unless I decide to make a crack version of this story, which again is more than unlikely), so in the off-chance of it being both I'll just have their relationship on the girls taking turns with the guy whenever he's jumping from one faction to the other every so often. And I've also decided that there will be bashing on Pre-Lich Arthas, mostly because the crown prince becomes a prick further into the campaign, then becomes an ego-tistical bastard when he becomes a Death Knight. And by that comment about his still-human bashing, I mean… well, do you really think that Dalaran won't send an asset to find out if the plague is more than magical in nature… but also demonic in origin?**

 **And no offense to Kalecgos, but if you guys decide to have Jaina stay with the OC no matter what, then I sure as hell will ensure that Anveena survives the end-game event of the Sunwell Raid. Somehow. It's not impossible guys really.**

 **Aside from that, the reason why I mention on choosing a pairing decision is because that will decide on whom the OC ultimately aids when the time comes for brief if not full-out conflict with either Horde or Alliance in future events. If it ends up being both women being with the OC... then that will provide the ultimate challenge to my story-writing skills (what few I have).**

 **And there definitely won't be a hostile Jaina if I have anything to say about it like Blizzard did for WoW (or at least not for long). I mean, she's even blaming THRALL of all people for the Mana-Bomb fiasco. Thrall; the same guy who just wants the Horde and Alliance to work together! That Thrall. God I hate how Jaina is now; she won't even listen to reason and (supposedly during the upcoming Legion expansion) she ups and leaves (In the middle of a FUKING BURNING LEGION INVASION) when The Six vote against her about denying the Blood Elves re-entry into the Kirin Tor because she's become an anti-horde, emo-licious BITCH!**

 ***panting* Sorry, but I just don't understand on why she's behaving like this when everyone knows that Garrosh is the one to blame for (almost) all of Jaina's friends being dead. And she's just pushing everyone else away too. Makes me wonder if more than just her hair color was altered when she survived the bomb….**

 **Anways, I'm guessing that you're also wondering about the blonde-haired gnome's sudden appearance. For those who don't know her already I don't blame you for being ignorant. It's Chromie my most favorite dragon of ALL TIME XDDD Also, I even have a legitimate reason for her presence being there: Of all the ways that time can branch off and expand, why don't stories like these have such a possibility of being known in the original WoW? So for all intents and purposes, this may be a much older Chromie (Post-End Cataclysm) or a much younger one (Pre-End Cataclysm). Who knows?**

 **Anyways, I hope that this explains a few things as I'll be holding my cards close for now and allow you people to like comment and/or follow the story. In the meantime, I need some sleep. *thud* -_- ZZZZzzzzzz**

 **Sincerely,**

 **Ninetails927**


	4. Princes and Plagues and Ogres Oh My Prt1

**AN: Wow, only 3 (or two technically) and yet over 200 views, 2 favs/follows and 5 reviews? And they're not flames to be put out?! T_T I'm so honored that you would all think that my first REAL story is worth your time. Thank you.**

 **Also, as I forgot to mention this in the last chapter, I have decided to open a blind poll on whom the final pairing will be, as well as which faction the OC will ultimately side with in major conflicts. He'd still be a team player and help out both Horde and Alliance when the time comes, but I mean for times that they'll clash and lose sight on what really matters (Like with the Ice Crown Raid where the airships have a go at each other, that kind of thing). And as a shoutout to katan12017, don't worry man at this point things should be slowing down now and I think that you're right on a few things there. But as for what said things are…. I'll leave it at that for you to think about XD**

 **Also, you guys really seem to favor Sylvanas (in reviews anyways) being the final decision, but it seems mostly based upon the fact that they had the most air-time together. But ya know what, if that's the case then its fine; don't sweat the details. As for those (if any) that wanted to see some more time with Jaina (and possible persuasion for the Final Decision), then that's what we'll be covering in this chapter after the side-tracked details get out of the way. That aside, there is what I dub the True Challenge, but that's because it would make things interesting for me to write it out, where he doesn't exactly peruse a direct relationship (like marriage) but still slowly grow with them as he becomes the true "3** **rd** **party" on any squabbles and/or conflicts. This may seem stressful, but believe me that being able to get any of this out in the open like it is now makes that stress an understatement.**

 **And before anyone gets any ideas, NO Chromie will not be one of the pairing options. While I do like the dragon/gnome for her spunky attitude and borderline '4** **th** **wall breaking' dialogue/questlines, I simply intend to have a friend for her to look out for and even help out (this will be another one of those 'explain later' things). But don't worry, we haven't seen the last of her…. Or was it the first time being seen? Eh, who knows.**

 **Anyways, You guys are great and I hope to have you all coming back for more. Now, onto the story!**

 **Chapter 3: Princes and Plagues and Ogres, Oh My! –Part I**

_Dalaran, entryway to Violet Citadel_

Eidolon, now 20 years of age, had begun his favorite pastime of wandering around the city looking for anything new to happen. His training with the Book of Medivh and notes from the First and Second Wars had been completed successfully, but even he and the Kirin Tor knew that there was much more to learn than from what they acquired. Anything short of summoning a demon would fulfill that desire to learn, and yet neither the Book nor Intel gave the specifications on how to do so other than the creation of a portal. THAT part made the Book's security go up that he wasn't to leave with it on his person anymore, not that he minded any. Stuck at an impasse he chose to refine what he knew so that they didn't get rusty from underuse and began to focus more of his time with learning the magic/swordplay hybrid form of combat from his mentor Hawke.

Currently he was able to equal the man with the utilization of the runes and spell/sword combinations with his trusty longsword the Javelin. People still chuckled at that as it had become an common joke that people still found funny, especially for the likes of Jaina and Sylvanas.

Speaking of them, Jaina had truly astonished Antonidas with her mastery over her ice spells that she was even creating new ones like Ring of Frost, where runes were set over a wide circular area and, after a few seconds to prime, froze everything inside of it. This was found to be very effective in both dealing damage and even capturing a target alive. Of course the second bit was known when she ended up using it on Eidolon during a friendly magical duel. She still found it funny every time she thought about his frozen face after it was discovered that he was still alive. Humor to suppress the growing panic he supposed.

As for Sylvanas, her letters stated that she was hearing news of trouble coming in from the northlands a ways from Dalaran and had asked permission to investigate the matter personally. That letter was a few days ago and he had sent a reply almost immediately afterwards that she be careful while she was out and that he's be mad at her if she got herself killed. There had been no response since then. He knew that she wasn't a Ranger-General for nothing but couldn't help but worry for a friend.

Anyways, he was overhearing an argument going on up ahead and slowed his pace to hear the conversation.

"…You must be wiser than the King! The end is near!" A man in a heavy leather cloak with a staff that had a raven carved onto the top of it was arguing with Antonidas, riding his horse as these days he was getting exhausted from walking everywhere far too easily, shaking his head at the cloaked madman. "I've told you before, I am not interested in this nonsense!" The cloaked Prophet shook his head with a heavy sigh. "Then I've wasted my time here." He turned his head to the oncoming Eidolon, narrowing his eyes at the young warlock before turning into a raven and flying off.

The young man was stopped dead in his tracks as their eyes made contact, feeling something very off about that crazy man. It wasn't a man looking at a person, but a deity looking into their very soul.

"You can come out now Jaina, and you too Eidolon, he's gone." The hidden sorceress approached her mentor as the warlock numbly made his way over to her side. "I'm sorry for eavesdropping, master, but-" Antonidas merely chuckled away her apology. "It's your inquisitive nature that I've come to rely on, child. That fool was convinced that the world was going to end." With a wave of his saff and pulse of power, the three were teleported up to a high canopy overlooking several mages and sorceresses mingling around the city in their day to day routines.

They all had a good look at the peace in the city before Jaina decided to speak up. "I've heard rumors of a plague spreading through the northlands. Do you really believe that it's magical in nature?" Antonidas became hardened when that subject became mentioned. "It's a very strong possibility. That is why I want you to investigate the matter and find out quickly. I've arranged a special envoy for you…. Eidolon? You've become very quiet since we began. Is there something on your mind?" The question made him snap at attention and turn to the elder. "I apologize, it's just that… I think he saw." When given questioning looks from Jaina and Antonidas, he decided to elaborate. "Before he left, he looked right at me…. But it felt more like he was looking **through** me."

This gave a shocked reaction to the sorceress and wizard, as they knew that only Silvermoon knew what he really was outside of Dalaran, and even then they made sure that it was a well-guarded secret. The discovery of a warlock at this stage, while he had yet to prove himself in the eyes of the Alliance, could spark a riot that would lead to a civil war with itself. With Dalaran as the first target. "I hope you are wrong, child. I really do…." He sighed heavily; with someone else knowing of the Kirin Tor's little pet project, he would need to have the protection level that of royalty….. that though sparked an idea for the wizened old man. "Eidolon, until we can sort this little mess out and find out just who knows about your existence, I want you to join Jaina to the northlands."

"What?/!" This was the intelligent response provided by Eidolon and Jaina respectively in synch, making them look at each other in surprise before looking away with a minor blush. Antonidas ignored their outburst and continued on his idea. "Jaina, while I have no doubt of your capabilities with discovering the nature of this plague, I want to see about Eidolon's sensory ability to find out if in fact this is demonic in origin or not. If it isn't than we will have less to worry about, but if it does… I want you to return immediately, as this may be a ploy of orc warlocks or something far worse." Both magic-wielders bowed to the old man. "Understood, master. We won't fail you." With that, Jaina placed a hand on Eidolon's shoulder and warped themselves away to prepare for the long trip.

Antonidas looked out into the city once more with a grim expression. _'_ _I may not believe that madman about this whole end of the world thing…. But if he knew about Eidolon being a warlock… what else could he know about?'_

_Three days later, Alterac, King's Road crossroads_

Arthas Menethil, Crown Prince of Lordaeron and Knight of the Silver Hand was currently sitting alongside three of his soldiers around a campfire as they awaited for an old friend from Dalaran to show up. He had not seen or heard from Jaina at all ever since he called down their relationship to better focus on their own training and duties, and wondered how she was doing or if she was coping well. She seemed a little broken from when he called it off, but he knew it was for the best.

One of his men, the captain, approached the Prince with a questioning look under his helmet. "Milord, we have been waiting for hours. Are you sure this friend of yours is coming?" Arthas laughed a little before responding. "I'm sure. Jaina usually runs a little late." An explosion sounded from the forest and made them all jump from the ground and readying their weapons, and shields for the soldiers, and awaited for whatever made the explosion as it sounded too close for comfort. "What the…" It was a few minutes later that two cloaked figures, one blue with a staff and the other wearing a dark purple with green lines running around it with a rune-etched longsword in hand that had 4 ogres giving chase after them.

As for why they were running from them in the first place…

_15 minutes earlier, Arathi wilderness_

The local ogres living in the mountains lived a relatively peaceful life; beating down on anyone that intruded onto their territory, no puny orcs to boss them around, hunting down the local wildlife to have all the meat they can eat, no puny orcs to boss them around, and let's not forget their favorite bit; _no puny orcs to boss them around_. All in all, they were living the good life.

"I'm telling you, we are lost!" "What are you talking about?! I got us into Arathi didn't ?" "Yes, but we were supposed to meet our envoy at the King's Road, and that's Light-knows how many MILES from here!" "At least I can be able to warp us to places!" "At least I can admit that I'm lost as all hell!"

The yelling match going on in the woods made many of the ogres confused, and a bit angry on who would dare cross into their turf. Soon enough the argument reached a clearing showing that it was a very red Jaina and Eidolon still yelling about how one's sense of direction was off than the other. Their screaming match was put to a halt when they heard the clearing of a throat in front of them and looked to the many ogres glaring at them. "Uh…. Do any of you know where the King's Road is?"

The response to Eidolon's question was replied in the form of a charging tide of hulking flesh and wood, making him grab Jaina's hand and squeaking out a simple "run." And run they did, casting what few spells behind them as they could to try and outrun the oncoming stampede. "Why would ask THEM where to go?! They barely have half a brain." "Why do you think they have two heads then?!" the longer the chase went the madder they were getting until it got to a boiling point; the two slid to a halt and held a hand out to the oncoming ogres. **"** **FROSTBOLT/SHADOWBOLT!"** The two spells, overcharged from their outrage ended up causing a rather interesting reaction; The Frostbolt became a large sharp glacier and the Shadowbolt ended being larger but, instead of staying that way, hit the Frostbolt and broke apart into multiple shards of black ice that went after the ogre line.

The two spells ended up causing a super-combined explosion that rocked the woods and was what Arthas and his men had felt. Near the impact both sorceress and warlock were blown back from the mistakenly combined combo and onto the ground in a daze before taking a look at what happened. "Woah."

Shards of the black ice had punctured everything before them; ground, tree, and ogres dead or dying was what waited their visual range. Getting back up, they looked at one another before a wide grin formed on their faces. "That was Amazing!" They kept rambling on about how the other was amazing with the overcharged spell that went into the collaboration, before they finally stopped and found that they were embracing each other in the high of the moment. Their brains reset before they finally broke away, a little red in the face. "Sorry, that was just…" "Yea, don't worry about it. I mean we both were…" Before they could continue they heard another, smaller wave of ogres charging after them. "Oh come ON! Run for it!"

And so the chase went on.

_Present time_

"We must help them!" "Stay your blade soldier, they can handle themselves."

Arthas and his men were watching the two finally stopping in his visual range and turned to face the 4 ogres, Jaina summoning a water elemental to take the brunt of the attacks while she casted frost spells at one and the unknown (to him) figure waving his hand to set a 2nd one on fire before charging a spell that made a wave of fire that moved like a snake to strike at the one he set on fire, causing a big explosion that ended it in moments from the amount of damage it took, while Jaina ended the first. As the other two ogres charged forward to take over their fallen comrades place, but one fell short as the purple/green cloaked figure adjusted his hold over his longsword and did something unorthodox with it.

The reason for the namesake of the blade being called 'The Javelin', while people found it funny at first, was shown just why as one of the runes on the weapon was set to, when filled with enough energy attuned his own, could be thrown like a javelin and, upon leaving physical contact of the wielder, 'blink' to the target at the speed of sound, resulting in the blade going hilt-deep into the ogre's skull. The force behind it made it fall backwards midair before crashing into the ground. Seeing that his partner was dead, both heads of the last ogre began to sweat as they looked back to the two they were chasing, the woman grinning as a fireball was formed in her hand in preparation, the water elemental looking ready to go another round, and the guy in purple raising his hand making the blade blink back to his possession, glaring at them in anticipation with green eyes that eerily reminded them of the Orc magicians back in the old days.

For once, the ogre race showed signs of true intelligence in the form of running in the other direction, wanting to be FAR away from those crazy people.

Seeing that the fight was over, Jaina and Eidolon relaxed and powered down, having been exhausted from the long run and the overcharged collaboration spell. They looked to see that they were being approached by a small company of men, three by the looks of it, and a man in more unique armor and blond hair down his shoulders that made Jaina flinch a little. Eidolon caught it and sent a questioning look before she whispered "Arthas." That was all the warlock needed as they were approached by the Knight before he began speaking. "Gentlemen, meet miss Jaina Proudmoore, special agent of the Kirin Tor, and one of the finest sorceresses in the land. Glad to see you haven't lost your touch." He smiled before continuing, not noticing her personal struggle with her dead feelings for the prince. "It's good to see you again, Jaina."

Eidolon recalled the last few times Jaina had spoken openly about her *coughformercough* relationship with the Crown Prince, and how it broke her heart a little that being separated was 'for the best'. He proceeded to tell her that, royalty or not, the knight was an idiot to just roll over like that if they had something, that a bond should not be discarded so easily, otherwise he might as well say that they had a fake romance. After a few more talks, she was able to get out of her funk about it and was better off not thinking about it, instead focusing on her training more and, by accident, gave her a new idea for a romantic partner in the future.

Jaina still recalled the warm feelings she'd get whenever the two just hung out and talked, even when having a meal in silence, it was better than the bitter loneliness Arthas left her with.

Speaking of said prince, he finally noticed that the other cloaked figure was between looking to Jaina in concern and glaring at the prince, something that unnerved him a little. "And who might you be? I was informed that only Jaina would be needed to investigate this matter." In regard of the rude tone used, the glare from the warlock intensified until an elbow courteous of the sorceress corrected his mannerism and bowed as Jaina covered introductions. Better to let her talk or risk his voice betraying his hostility against the crown prince. "This is Eidolon, also an agent of the Kirin Tor. He was a last-minute entry into this little operation as the Kirin Tor decided that his sensory skills in studying demonic taint would tell us on whether or not their hand was involved in the plague if it was magical in nature. Don't give me that look Arthas, it's just a precaution that probably won't turn up anything, but The Six insisted that this be done."

Jaina knew that lying like this was a bit wrong personally, but she knew that it had to be done; if the Knight suspected Eidolon of being a warlock then all hell would break loose, and what better way to make him drop the subject than telling him that the highest authority from another capital decreed it to be so?

Her fib worked perfectly as Arthas didn't look like he would argue the other 'mage' being here, at least for now, and turned back to Jaina. "Well then, I guess we should get underway." Satisfied that the situation was handled, she dismissed the water elemental ((Wait, I just got he- *pop*)) and lead her companion and escorts onto the intended path. "Our sources believe the plague originated from the northlands. We should probably check on the villages along the King's Road." With their course decided, the company of six (Arthas, Jaina, Eidolon, the captain and two foot soldiers) began their journey down the King's Road to investigate the plague.

Eidolon for one only wondered on how badly this mission was going to go, as things tend to go bad around him since the first time he left Dalaran's walls…


	5. Princes and Plagues and Ogres Oh My Prt2

**Chapter 4: Princes and Plagues and Ogres, Oh My! –Part II**

"Why do I have to be right?" Currently the company of seven, whom were trying to head further north to find the source of the plague, was forced to a grinding halt when they noticed that the bridge was completely destroyed. Taking a quick inspection and talking with the soldiers for a moment, Eidolon suspected that this was done in haste, but with full intention of slowing them down. "We're not going anywhere with the bridge out." Arthas cursed under his breath. "There has to be another way around."

"Milord?" One of the villagers behind them stepped forth a little hesitantly before continuing. "There is another way to cross, but it's not as safe as it used to be." Arthas looked to his party and nodded his head to the villager. "We have to risk it. Where can we take this path?" He pointed to a path between the trees, the grass around it being a good sign that it hasn't seen use in some time. "Alright company, let's move out."

Arthas and the soldiers took the front while the spell casters took the back formation as they began to move, sheids and hammer up as Jaina and Eidolon kept on the lookout while having a quiet conversation between them. "He's a bit of a prick, but at least he knows when not to make any moves on a lady…. For now at least. This is the guy you dated?" Jaina looked away a bit as she held the cloak closer to her. "Jaina please, you don't have to torture yourself like this. He's the one who decided that being away was for the best, leaving you alone." She frowned before smiling softly. "True, but you're wrong on being left alone; I had you." He returned the smile in kind as he patted her shoulder. "That's more like it. And if he starts bothering you I'll give him a piece of my mind, and maybe request that we try that collaboration spell again." She giggled at his positive, upbeat attitude before they continued on walking down the path.

Arthas, while he couldn't hear anything from them, could see that Jaina was shelling up for a second, but then something from the young man brought her out of it and was even giggling. He hadn't seen her do that since they split, and he was feeling a bit agitated about it but wasn't sure why.

"Slaughter them all and sack the town!" They could hear the sound of fighting up ahead and began moving in, finding that bandits had decided to attack the villagers then and there. "Save us!" The screaming villager was cut down by an axe, falling to the ground and crawling away while he still could. A foot on his back stopped his movement as the bandit intended to finish him off…. If it wasn't for a black orb that slammed into his chest and knocking him away. Looking up, the villager saw people running up to him, then past him as they pushed back the attackers.

Arthas ran up to him and, channeling the holy power under his command, began to mend the villager's wounds as a robed woman summoned forth the water elemental ((FREE AT LAST!)), while the other robed figure pulled out a longsword with weird marking on it and clashed steel with another bandit, then waving his hand that made him catch on fire. The burning bandit was flailing around before his head was removed from his person.

Eidolon could see that, despite being mere foot soldiers, the captain and his two fellow footmen were exceptionally skilled; they baited the bandits to strike the shield, bat away the weapon and earn a free hit against the inexperienced soldiers. And they covered each other's blind spots so to prevent any of the bandits from getting at there.

It took a few moments, but they finally took out the last bandit, shortly after Arthas joined the fray, and was given the credit of the whole situation. This peeved Eidolon, but Jaina managed to reel back his temper or risk exposing himself from his Fel energy fluxing. It was a good thing that Arthas had not seen him use the Shdowbolt as he was more focused on healing the wounded. A woman came up to them holding a bottle with green liquid inside. "Oh, thank you so much for saving us. Here, please take this as our token of appreciation." Nodding his head in acceptance before pocketing it and turning to the company, whom by now was fully rested. "Alright then, let's get moving then."

It was near the river where they found the path the villagers told about, finding a few patches of land visible for them to walk on to pass and… _'_ _Oh god the bane of my very existence.'_ Murlocks. There were murlocks everywhere. The footmen and captain gave the warlock some space and Jaina simply slapping her hand to her forehead to reel in the oncoming headache. "Uh, milady? What's up with him?" The captain was eye the male magic wielder as he stepped forth and was starting to giggle like a madman. "He has a…. Extreme disorder that can only be sated by the death of murlocks. Like those ones."

The footmen looked horrified as they watch Eidolon laughing like a maniac cutting down murlocks that kept on rushing at him to only meet their end by Confligulation or tasting the steel of his blade. "I would advise that we let him take point from here." No one argued with that, even though Arthas really wanted to but it was Jaina's request so he let it slide.

Less than a minute, and a small band of more bandits later, they finally reached solid land and Jaina was running damage control to get her young friend to calm down from his murlock-murdering high. Up ahead however, there was more yelling and fighting. "Lock your shields and defend yourselves boys. Those arrows won't get through us!" Seeing that it was footmen against…. Skeletons? Walking, attacking skeletons.

Already Eidolon was regretting on coming along this adventure, but he'd do so a hundred times more if he could keep Jaina from falling apart being near Arthas for even a second more. "Jaina! Let's try that collaboration again." Jaina needed a second to recall how they did it and nodded her head. "Alright, Arthas I need you and your men out of the way and behind us. This is gonna get ugly."

The men that were fighting a losing battle heard a scream of 'GET DOWN!' and didn't even hesitate for a second. They were lucky they did as not a second later over a dozen shards of black ice flew inches from their heads and nailed each skeleton, some hit several times, and cleared the area of them in a heartbeat. They looked back to the slightly panting Jaina and Eidolon, both wearing a grin on their faces as Arthas looked on in shock before focusing on the two. "What was that?" They looked to each other, thinking of the same thing, then back to the knight with the answer " **BlackBlizzard**."

After the confusion was settled, the Sargent that was leading the band of three confirmed that skeletons had spontaneously attacked and that the village had gone mad. Whatever it was that was going on, Eidolon didn't like it as he pulled Jaina to the side for a moment, again being briefly spotted as the company took a needed break by Arthas, whom was stewing in irritation that the two of them were getting a lot closer and whispering about something.

"Jaina, something is going on here, and its not just the plague. Since when have there been free-roaming necromancers?" Jaina looked to him in shock before continuing. "You think that this is a necromancer at work?" He sighed softly before responding. "I suspect that the term may be plural, and that's never a good thing. We need more information on this." Agreeing that enough was said for now they returned to the group to wait out the break as they continued to advance.

With the break over, they continued to push on, fighting off a brief ambush in exchange for a mana potion that Jaina sorely needed then, more than Eidolon did as he admitted that her powerful spells demanded a lot of energy (much to Jaina's pleasure and Arthas' irritation). Noticing that it was getting dark, they pushed on to make camp around the local Fountain of Health. Of course it was to be short lived as Arthas needed them to get going but was shot down by the warlock stating that they had done nothing but fighting and traveling for the whole day and needed rest to recover and remain energized, or risk getting wiped out if another ambush came along.

So camped they did, with the footmen offering to take the lookout shifts so that the paladin and mages could get some rest. Jaina and Eidolon thanked them, which got them more points in the footmen's books, especially the captain with the warlocks swordplay and openly admitted that "even if you weren't a mage, you'd make a hell of a soldier." Of course he didn't take many compliments outside of his small, small circle of friends and thanked them for his input of his swordplay in real combat.

They set off again at morning's first light and came upon a most odd sight at one of the granaries. "It looks like the ground around the granary is… dying." True be told, the very earth and trees in the immediate area looked like it had been sucked dry of all life, leaving nothing more than grey if not outright blackened dead land and husks of former trees. Eidolon stepped forward and found a more concentrated spot of barren land around some the crates containing the grain. "Jaina! They all have the seals of Andorhal. Isn't that the primary distribution center for the northern region?" Arthas looked horrified at the concept of the plague spreading in such a way that it would be like wildfire.

"I really hope that's not true. Come back here Eidolon, we need to destroy this granary." The warlock complied and stood next to her. "Allow me then? I've needed to try one of my new spells, and I don't think that your Blizzard is going to do the trick on killing this. No offence Jaina." She shrugged and allowed him to charge up his spell. He flicked his hand at the granary and, seconds later, flaming rocks rained from the sky and focused on the contaminated structure, taking down the entire thing, along with the surround crates, in glorious hellfire.

"That covers that. Let's get moving then." Onward the company of nine went ((I'm not making the number up here: I'm literally going through Warcraft III as I type this out to ensure that I remain as highly accurate as possible…. Along with some of my own additions :D)) into the village remains where they finally encountered a necromancer and an army of skeletons, whom had just finished killing a villager. "Slay them all!" The footmen raised their shields and took the brunt of the attacks for the casters as they rained death upon the reanimated bones as Arthas took out the necromance, halting the reinforcements coming up from the dead villagers. After a reprieve from the battle, they marched on.

Up ahead they discovered two high elves waiting about until they caught sight of the oncoming company, noticing Eidolon amongst the group whom they gave a bow to. "Greetings to you once more, Sir Eidolon. We are priests sent from Quel'Thalas send to offer aid in healing the land and its people of this strange curse." The company was surprised, none more so then the young warlock. "Please, there is no need to bow to me. Your help, however, is greatly appreciated as the Paladin cannot fight and mend wounds all at the same time." Arthas looked miffed as Jaina playfully poked him with her shoulder. "'Sir'? I didn't know you became a celebrity in Quel'Thalas." He was left mumbling "neither did I" as the priests began to mend the injuries on the footmen, whom were greatly appreciating the magic closing their wounds and rejuvenating their strength.

One of the priests turned to Eidolon with a grimed expression. "We were sent ahead of our own company, whom is currently spread out to cover more ground and was strictly informed by our superior that we help anyone wandering about, especially you sir." This got a confused look from the young warlock which was ignored in favor of more important information. "We must be wary though, there is a granary warehouse up ahead that houses something that is, most likely, the source of the blight in the area." With a nod of appreciation the company of now eleven marched on, Arthas and the footmen infront and the priests joining Jaina and Eidolon.

They soon found more support in the form of a pair of dwarfs named Bible and Boble (First crack at temp. OCs) whom were having a blast….. Blasting away skeletons. Yea, sounds better in your head, doesn't it? ANYWAYS, they pushed though the center of town to find…

"We have been discovered my brothers, quickly, flee from this place and continue the operation." The one barking orders was a rather unique looking necromancer that made Eidolon suspicious until… "Wait, that can't be."

 __8 Years ago, Dalaran__

 _A much younger Eidolon was struggling with understanding the unorganized mess that was the Intel provided about the known orc Warlocks when he was approached by a late-middle-aged man whom was chuckling at the boy's predicament. "Is something the matter, child?" Sighing, he looked to the man whom had approached him, and recalled seeing him that day when he was sent to The Six to decide his fate. He didn't say anything, but he definitely didn't give him a look like the guy who had it out for him. "Sort of, I'm trying to understand the notes that were provided during the First War, but it's all just bundled together, no order."_

 _Unknown to the boy, a wave of the elder's hand was causing the papers to move around and about, actually sorting itself as he kept him occupied. "Well, the First war was something that no one saw coming, but here in Dalaran we are always learning and improving to become greater. And one day," he turned him around to show the now organized pile, even having the exact notes Eidolon was looking for in a different pile. "You will too." The amazement in the boys eyes made the whole thing worth it to him as he looked over the papers, finding them to be legit and thanking the kind old man. "Thank you so much sir…. But I don't know your name." With another chuckle, he patted the boy's head. "Well, it's good to be curious, but keep in mind that like the cat, curiosity will be the death of you. And as for my name, it's-"_

"-Kel'Thuzad!" The necromancer now identified turned to the group before him, spotted Eidolon and smiled. "Well, if it isn't the young boy who was lost in a pile of old papers. And even more so, you remembered my name; I give you full marks for that." The warlock was growling, hands balled tightly as he glared at the old man. "Why? Why are you doing this!" Kel'Thuzad sighed as he walked to the side some, using the staff as a walking stick. "Now now, child, remember what I told you about curiosity and the cat?" A pack of ghouls began to crawl closer as heavy footsteps could be felt. "It will be the death of you."

Coming into view was something that may as well have crawled right out of a horror story; a huge grey colored abomination that had three arms, and a second mouth where its stomach should be, as well as emitting a horrid stench. "What is that thing?! It looks like it was sewn together from different corpses." The Abomination charged at the company with a roar and a swing of its giant butcher knife, leading the way for the ghouls and summoned skeletons. "Let's study it AFTER we kill it, okay? Everyone in formation NOW!"

Watching close by was a small creature that radiated fire from its head and body, with two sets of horns ontop of its head while it grinned like a maniac, eyeing the Warlock of the group. _'_ _Alright then, I think I've waited long enough for this; show me what you got kid!'_

 **Apologies for cutting this chapter supposedly short, but up next will be my biggest fight scene so far, and I may as well dub this as a Mini-Boss scenario. With the First Boss being Kel'Thuzad himself. Also, that had the only time that the inbetween content of Trips Down Memory Lane gets mentioned and will probably be the last of it.**

 **Also, I need to explain how BlackBlizzard works: It consists of the mixing of the FrostBolt and ShadowBolt merging into black ice, which compacts the damage of one under the other, making the impact much more devastating. And the reason for the first one causing the huge explosion was because of their emotions fueling the spell, making it a lot larger than it should have been and caused a lot of collateral damage. After they worked out how it happened they managed to reduce the amount of power needed to get similar, if not more controlled, results. The ratio between Shadow and Ice is 2-3 for controlled, and 5-7 for the bigger boom. First one was 20-35, making very volatile.**

 **I hope that this gave you people a lot of Jaina/Eidolon interaction with one another, and I'll be in the works of the next chapter soon. For now, I need some sleep. *THUD* X\ ZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz**

 **Sincerely,**

 **Ninetals927**


	6. Princes and Plagues and Ogres Finale

**Here it is pplz the Mini-Boss sequence XD Oh god I'm go giddy right now because people want to read this apparently. Again, I thank you people for liking to read this piece of literature of mine and I hope that I don't disappoint in the future.**

 **Well, not disappoint most then because doing that for everyone is impossible. So I'll just tend to people like you, reading this right now.**

 **So here we go: Team Alliance (Eidolon, Jaina, Arthas, 5 Footmen + the Captain, two priests and the dwarf demo-brothers Bible and Boble) VS Team Undead (7 skeletons, 4 ghouls and The Abomination Mini-Boss) fighting near Granary Warehouse (!WARNING HEAVY BLIGHT DETECTED! +Regen to all Undead Units, +AttackSpeed to All Undead Units, +MovementSpeed to All Undead Units)**

 **FIGHT!**

 **Chapter Five: Princes and Plagues and Ogres, Oh My! –Finale**

The footmen stood in a line, shields locked into place as they awaited the oncoming wave of undead headed for them. It was a few seconds of anticipation before they collided with them at speeds faster then normal, but what really got them surprised was when the ghouls –the deformed skeletons- actually jumped over the defensive line to get at the Healers. "Jaina! Danger close." With a nod from the blond woman, she held a hand out before her and shot out her **Cone of Cold** , only freezing one of them that she finished off with a barrage of **Blizzard**. Two of them broke away from the push to get at Eidolon's, who knew that he had to be cautious at what spells he uses and the ones to fit the situation would give him away to the others.

Luckily intervention came in the form of Arthas, who saw the kill-team going for the priests and rushed from the front, ordering the men to hold their ground as he used his trusty hammer to knock one ghoul's head clean off, making it fly a few yards before rolling on the ground a bit more and down a rabbit hole. Seeing the skull's trajectory, Eidolon gave a thumb's up to Arthas. "Good shot sir!" Getting a grin in response, Arthas hardened himself as he looked to the oncoming Abomination. "We can't let that thing breach the line. Jaina?" Without a word, she conjured a Ring of Frost in the blighted pathway of the juggernaut, making contact with it and got its foot frozen in place, losing its sense of balance and falling on its stomach. "Now Eidolon!"

The young warlock charged up the runes in Javelin and prepared to launch the longsword, aiming right where its skull-

He froze, his body pulsing in pain and forcing him to go on one knee. He wasn't sure why this was happening, but he soon heard a chuckle ringing in his head. It was high pitched and sounded like it was enjoying his pain. _"_ _Let's see how you do when it's just you, eh? I need to make sure that our new master is capable of outwitting his adversaries even if it's against all odds..."_ Before he could question what the voice meant he looked to see that his leg had a meathook attached to a long chain from the abomination's smaller arm. "Oh shi-"

Feeling a tug shot pain through his system, barely hearing the horrified scream from Jaina and shouts from the footmen and priests as he was dragged from behind the line and onto the blighted turf. He barely managed to roll away from an oncoming cleaver when his leg was freed up but bloodied. He cursed himself for not taking any health potions when Jaina offered them from the Health fountain and charged up an **Immolate** ….. Only for nothing to happen. "What?" The shock costed him as he was sent flying via giant fist of decaying mass.

Jaina looked on horrified as she knew that something was very wrong; she felt the build-up of his Fel Energy but noticed that nothing came out of it. Whatever happened prior to getting hooked into close combat with that Abomination seemed to have negated his ability to cast spells. Leaving him with… the Javelin was still laying on the ground where he got pulled in from. With unabated fury she began to spam frostbolts and summoned forth her Water Elemental ((FINALLY I GET TO SEE SOME ACTION)) to try and end the attack on their front quickly. Her body felt renewed with the determination to get back to Eidolon as quickly as possible, as he needed her help now more than ever. He would not die here if it was the last thing she did!

Eidolon for one was cursing out loud words that would make an Alliance navy office blush as he ran circles around the Abomination, finding it to be a lot faster and reacting more quickly than he expected of its size. _'_ _Checklist review: Can't cast spells, so there goes eighty percent of my arsenal out the window, and the Javelin is back past the defensive line. AND I hear voices in my head screwing with me like this is some comedic play! Well, screw you too voices-in-my-head!'_ He rolled backwards from the oncoming cleaver that almost bisected him, propping himself upright on the blighted turf. He noticed that, for whatever reason, the Abomination was starting to slow down and become sluggish, making him wonder if the dead really did feel exhaustion. _'_ _Don't be stupid of course they don't, which means that whatever was giving him that boost is power is either in wearing off or-!'_ He noticed that they were getting farther away from the granary warehouse that was the source of the heavy bilght in the area. _'_ _Of Course! The Grains that are causing this blight is still stored in the warehouse. Which means…! Yes, we can still win this.'_

He ran towards the abomination and, after channeling Fel energy into his legs he jumped over and landed a heavy kick onto its head, making it fall backwards. Having bought himself some time he made a run for the granary warehouse and managed to climb ontop of it. In position, he spotted the two dwarfs, whom were waiting for an open target as they couldn't risk their mortar hitting friendlies. Perfect. He whistled loudly which got their attention, as well as Jaina's, as he started screaming at the top of his lungs. "HEY BIBLE, BOBLE: KHAGUN MENU PENU RUKHS AND OZIRUM MENU SELEKU!"*

The Humans had no idea what he was saying, but whatever it was it had royally pissed off the dwarves. "HOW **DARE** YOU! NO BODY INSULTS OUR MOTHER **AND** SPOONS AND GETS TO LIVE! BIBLE, TAKE AIM AT THAT LITTLE-" He didn't get to finish as his brother was already taking aim and lit the fuse. Seconds later the mortar was fired, sending its shell high into the air before it arched down on their intended target; Eidolon and by extension the warehouse. Quickly he ran off the roof and was rolling on the ground running, while the granary warehouse behind him was soon hit by the mortar shell. It seemed that they were packing something special because when it went through the roof and went off the entire structure was blown apart, resulting in a mushroom cloud and the earth quaking under their feet as the only evidence that it was once a building.

The effects weren't exactly immediate but it was noticed; the remaining skeletons were moving more sluggish and not patching themselves together anymore, which allowed the captain and his footmen to take the rest of them out with ease as Jaina sighed with relief, before noticing that the Abomination was still alive. "EIDOLON!" Looking back to see the hulking undead at the apex of his swing, the young warlock attempted to shield himself from the oncoming death, but only heard the sound of steel hitting something much harder. Looking up he saw that he was surrounded in a golden see-through bubble that deflected the attack completely. "What the?"

"CHARGE!" It was then that a blast of Holy Light inflicted heavy damage upon the Abomination and Arthas, along with the footmen and Captain, charged forward and began an onslaught of sword- and hammer-strikes against it, before a larger FrostBolt came flying in and obliterated the head, making the remaining corpse fall forward in a head before quickly decaying until nothing but bone was left. Seeing that the fight was over, Eidolon fell backwards only to be caught by Jaina who hugged him fiercely. He could hear her trying to choke down a sob while muttering "you big idiot" several times before calming down and setting his head on her lap, where the priests began to tend to his wounds.

"Wait, what about the-" The captain laughed off his concern before answering. "Did you hit your head or something? You just took on that hulking abomination by yourself, with no spells and no weapon until we pulled your arse out of the fire. Reckless and stupid if you ask us, but you kept it at bay until we could deal with the smaller ones, otherwise we'd all be walking corpses. You have our thanks… Sir."

He looked to the high elves next, whom shook their heads before speaking. "While we did indeed use a lot of our mana to keep the men fighting, it would have been much worse if you hadn't committed to such a brave, but reckless act. Once again, you have our gratitude for your sacrifice, Sir Eidolon. Now please relax and we will have your wounds healed shortly."

Finding that he was on a losing battle by arguing with them about it, he complied before Jaina drew his attention above him. "You know, if Hawke heard about you losing your grip on your longsword…" Groaning, he looked up to her with slight panic. "Please don't tell Master Hawke; I can't stand another one of his remedial lessons!" Jaina 'hmm'ed out loud like she was debating on it, making him panic more until she shrugged her shoulders. "Alright, I won't tell him… on one condition. Next time, when I offer you a health potion, you are to nod your head, say 'yes milady', and take it without any complaining. Got it?" "Deal."

Arthas for one was stuck wondering about the necromancer that got away and the seething jealousy of Jaina dotting on the injured Eidolon, like they were together or something. He was starting to see that the feelings she once had for him were pretty much all but gone now, and at some point had him replaced with this young man. Just who was this Eidolon? Why was he closer to Jaina than he was? And what did the High Elves mean when they called him 'Sir', like he was a well-respected person to them? They hardly respected anyone outside of Quel'Thalas except for royalty (which was a given) and an even smaller circle of individuals whom were a part of fighting the orcs off from burning down their homeland's forests.

Deciding to put his growing personal problem aside for now, the Crown Prince stepped forth and glared at Eidolon. "Just who was that robed man? It seemed like you knew him personally Eidolon. Friend of yours?" Jaina for one did **not** like how Arthas was short of interrogating her injured friend and, since she was still on 'protect' mode, snapped back at him. "The robed man was Kel'Thuzad, an ex-archmage of the Kirin Tor, and former member of The Six. We haven't seen or heard of him since he had fled Dalaran when Kirin Tor agents discovered that he was dabbling in Necromancy, which made the skeletons we fought today, as it had been deemed as forbidden. But those strange skeletons and that Abomination…. Just how far did he dabble into the art to attain that kind of power?"

Now refocusing on the plague and what it was causing, along with who was involved, Arthas looked down the path where the necromancer and his acolytes ran off to. "Well, it's a good bet that we'll find him, and our answers, in Andorhal. How soon can he be ready to move?" The Priests looked over the warlock's current state and replied. "Due to the damage done to his leg and his exertion with it, it will take several minutes to make it useable." Nodding his head at the answer, he turned to the foot soldiers. "Alright men, take a break for now but be prepared to move at a moment's notice."

With that, the footmen, captain, Bible, Boble and Arthas began to settle down near the town square of what remained of Brill, giving some privacy for Jaina, Eidolon and the priests as she began her own little interrogation. "Alright, so mind explaining what just happened? You were about to throw the Javelin and then you just… froze. Then you couldn't cast any of your spells." _'_ _Leave it to Jaina to spot something that everyone else would miss.'_ "Antonidas was right; you really do have an inquisitive mind Jaina. As for what happened…!" His demon-sensing ability, which he had forgotten was still on, picked up on something that drew his attention to the left near the grain fields and saw a short being walking up to the small group, his body mostly on fire and two sets of horns on his head. He was short enough to reach his thigh as he heard that same chuckle that he recalled rang in his head before.

"Serah Eidolon, At last we finally meet in person." Jaina and the priests grabbed their staffs and prepared themselves for a fight. "Now now, let's not get hasty here. I didn't come here for a fight." Eidolon glared at the little demon before speaking. "So, I finally get to see a real demon before me. Who summoned you? Why are you here?" The little demon chuckled before breaking out into full-on laughter. "I can't really tell you who summoned me here, but I've been in this world for almost ten years now. See, when I was summoned here, I was never dismissed, so I never really left. For nine years we've been watching you grow and become powerful. By all rights, you are strong…. But eventually something bigger and badder comes along and almost squishes you like an insect. So I bided my time, and the opportune moment has finally shown itself."

Jaina looked confused now, but refused to put down the staff or leave Eidolon alone as she questioned the Fel Imp. "'Opportune moment'? Why did you wait so long then instead of presenting yourself when you had the chance?" The imp shrugged before pacing around. "There is a saying that I heard from a dwarf during my time hiding here, and I believe it fits perfectly for this; gold flows when I talk and when I shut up. In short, there is a time and place for everything, but all other moments where I could show myself were just at the wrong time or place. Now, let's get back on track: I wish to make a deal with you, Eidolon. You see, unlike most demons you may have heard about, there are a few that are willing to offer a binding contact so that they may taste what real freedom is like outside of the Burning Legion. In exchange, we offer our services to the one we are bound to, as well as offer new spells and abilities for when you have the willpower to learn and understand them…. Which I really doubt you're lacking in as your Fel energies are divine in quality, and massive in quantity."

With his piece said, he walked before the warlock and extended a hand to him. "So, what do you say? Do we have a deal?" Jaina was looking between the two in worry; of course the chance to learn more spells and abilities would appeal to Eidolon's sense of protecting people but she personally feared that this 'deal' of the Imp's would come to backfire on her friend. And that was not something she was going to tolerate in the slightest. She saw that he was at his worst today, and would strive to make sure that it didn't happen again, but sometimes the road to hell is paved on good intentions. _'_ _If he strays from his path, I'll just freeze him and dragged his frozen body back on the right course.'_ Finally, it seemed that Eidolon had made his choice as he spoke up. "Before I decide, I want one question answered. Why? Why offer this deal to me if there were so many other warlocks you could have given your services to?" The imp was quiet for a bit before his high-pitched chuckle rang out again. "True, I could have made this deal with anyone else, instead of biding my time. However, we were asked to offer only to you, as it was my last master's dying wish. And before you ask who, I am not at liberty to tell, as it is not my place to do so. You may have to ask the others… if you can impress them too."

Taking a few more seconds to think, he slowly raised his hand and clasped it over the much smaller appendage. "We have a deal. Can I least have your name if nothing else?" The last question made the Fel Imp grin. _'_ _Oh,_ ** _she_** _was right on the mark about this one. Looks like Mal'Krieth owes me some gold when I find him.'_ He turned into a pillar of flame that soon faded, finally dismissing himself from that plane of existence before speaking aloud. "The name is Kalcifer, and I look forward to see what you will become in the near future…"

With the demon apparently gone, the four sighed with relief before Eidolon turned to the two priests, but was unable to speak before they did. "Do not fret, young Eidolon; no one will know of these events from us, aside from our commanding officer. Dalaran and Silvermoon will need to be informed of this development, but we trust your wisdom and judgement to make full use of this opportunity without straying from your intended goal. Let us return to the others; your leg has been healed but will need time before it can be used in combat again."

With his secret still secured and now new openings to learn made known, Eidolon and the others returned to Brill to regroup with the others. Andorhal was their next destination, and they would need to be prepared for the oncoming storm in the form of the walking dead.

 **Woohoo! First big fight covered and done, along with gaining the first of the summons: Kalcifer the Fel Imp! Now the reason I say Fel Imp instead of the normal imp is that I'm implying the possibility that demons don't really age, but instead become more powerful over time until they hit their peak, and the variants from WoW's Grimoire of Supremacy seems to be that apex of their power and form. So all of Eidolon's gained summons will be the upgraded version…. Except for the Felhound. There is NO way in hell I'm getting rid of that little guy (He's like a puppy that can eat your face off and not care about it XD) What I'll be doing for that particular one will be revealed further into the story.**

 **Also as I've decided to take another look through the reviews(which is available on my profile but it'll remain blind so as to make all the votes fair and not be pushed to vote for one over the others) and it seems , and that there is a major cluster of you going in favor of Sylvanas (and by extension the Horde). Maybe its because of her slight OOC behavior in the second chapter or some other reason, but I'm not one to judge. Really I'm not; if you guys want to see Sylvanas/Eidolon really happen then that's good on you; just make sure it gets noticed on either comments and/or the poll and I'll be sure to make it count when the time comes for the Final Decision. Some of you even provided some valid reasons to make it happen (I for one am not sure on how other stories have pairings with Syl but I'm not gonna get into that so DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT MENTIONING IT!) *Phew***

 **Anyways,**

 **I would also like to give a shot out to** **. ?name=Khuzdul#insults** **for providing the insults Eidolon used to agitate the dwarfs as I was thinking on how it would be translated into the Dwarvish tongue. The reason behind this idea is that I recall a quest back in the Lich King expansion about how you were sent out to kill a** **Vrykul chieftain by making him come down to face you personally. The provided means to do so was some paper containing words that would** **make** **him come down written in the giant's language. Whatever was written on it wasn't explained, but it completely pissed him off, screaming about how you insulted his mother. So…. yea, kudos to Blizzard for that one.**

 **Anyways, as I will quote jacksepticeye, if you liked this story and want more, then hit that like button. In the face. LIKE A BOSS! And Cyber cookies for everyone all around *ding* ooh, there they are. I hope you like the chapter as I'll be starting on the next one very shortly.**

 **Sincerely,**

 **Ninetails927**


	7. On The Way To Andorhal - Prt I

**HELLOOOOOO ONE AND ALL.**

 **I hope that the last chapter was to your liking, because I'm back for another one.**

 **And as a refresher so that I don't get sued at all: I do NOT own Warcraft or WoW, that all belongs to Blizzard Entertainment with the exception of my OCs. They stay with me now and forever.**

 **With that, On with the show XD**

 **Chapter Six: Something Funny Happened On The Way To Andorhal – Prt I**

It was a few hours after the battle at Brill that we found our heroes ((Not giving Arthas the satisfaction of that entitlement)) and their company ((Much better)) nearing the outskirts of Andorhal, where they found a clearing where three acolytes were nearing one of the gold mines, apparently doing something to the resource structure as green runes formed around it with bone protrusions forming a cage. When Jaina questioned its purpose, Eidolon made the smart call that even Arthas agreed to, despite his personal issues with the boy. "Jaina, I for one don't want to find out right now. Bible, Boble; nail those sonsabiches, but TRY to leave one alive for quesitoning."

"No promises. Alright brother… Fire!" One mortar shell soared into the air and landed on the one at the far right, blowing him to pieces while the middle was torn from the explosive residue, leaving the last one with 2nd degree burns and some shrapnel in his leg to keep him from running, knocked over from the blast. Before he could go anywhere, Arthas planted a foot on his back while the footmen came up to secure him. "I want a priest on him to make sure he doesn't bleed out before we get some answers. And check him for weapons doo; can't have him killing himself if we can help it."

Eidolon looked to oncoming wave of workers that had come from the remnants of Brill and began barking out orders. "Alright boys, here's the drill: We got ourselves some cultists with a plan to take out the northlands by spreading a plague via the granary. I need a base made here, quick as you can, because the dead don't sleep and won't wait up on us if they haven't found us already. Now then, MOVE OUT!" "Sir!" With a salute to the warlock, the peons began building up a base around the area, a primary station to house and train more workers as they came and a barracks for oncoming footmen to arm themselves with. "Bible, Boble, I need you and 3 footmen standing as sentry on the path to Andorhal. If you see anything that's not human, blow it to bits but do not give chase; this is their turf now, and anything can be out there. Captain, secure a perimeter around this clearing until we know what we're dealing with." With a salute, the mentioned soldiers took their position as a peon was scheduled to get some sentry towers built after the base was set up. He looked to the priest unoccupied and approached him. "You said that you were sent ahead of your team? Can you perhaps call them from wherever they are so that they can have a place to sleep? I'd rather not let them risk their lives any more than they have to. If we're lucky, we may even find a suitable place to set up a base of their own; two armies are better than one." "I'll send out a message to my commanding officer and consult with them about your decision, but I am certain that they will agree with you, as it is better to go together than alone."

With a nod of thanks, Eidolon turned around only to be faced with a peeved Arthas. "Can I help you Arthas?" Looking angrier than he was a second ago he pointed a plated finger at the robed chest. "Let's get one thing straight; these are my men, so I give the orders around here, not some half-wit who doesn't know the reality of war. Got it?" Not waiting for an answer, he pushed past the warlock rather forcefully towards the nearly completed town hall, confusing the younger man before he looked to see Jaina coming closer, and she didn't look happy either. "Oh great, not you too. What did I do wrong?" Noticing that her emotions were showing to the wrong person, she gave a soft smile before continuing. "You, nothing; you gave the right calls in setting up a perimeter while the base was underway and even set up a means of having allies with what you have around you. It's Arthas I'm having a problem with, as he seems to feel threatened by your judgement calls. Speaking of, since when did you become a born leader?" Her playful smile and quirking eyes gazed him down while he cursed on how much attention she paid to the finer details. "During my time in Silvermoon, I met up with a few people that were veteran commanders while playing a game of chess. When they challenged me, they ended up giving pointers about how one always secure victory by having the fewest casualties if at all possible. So I just took their words to heart and kept on learning more on how to be a field commander. Thought that it might come in handy in the future."

"And so it appears it does. I don't think even Arthas could come up with a plan like that, which much be part of the reason why he's angry with you." He looked to her in confusion before she elaborated. "I just…. Since we met up with him back at the King's Road after that encounter with the ogres, his overall attitude has been dropping and, after the battle at Brill, got worse. I'm not sure what it is, but try to steer clear of him for now if you can; let him blow off some steam. Hey, how about we find that other set up area you were talking about? Can't leave your High Elf friends hanging, now can ya?" With the prospect of getting away from the unknown drama around Arthas, he nodded his head in agreement before they went to make sure that they had what they needed in case they had to be there overnight. "Captain, Jaina and I will be securing the nearby gold mines. If we are not back in 48 hours, send a search party." "Understood sir. Good hunting."

_Wilderness near Andorhal_

Jaina and Eidolon were having a nice time, just being the two of them again like it was in Dalaran. Except this time, there were no passerbys (aside from the local wildlife, forest trolls, golems, and murlocks those didn't last long), no all-seeing sentries of the Kirin Tor. They were truly alone. Together. Possible camping out in the woods.

What can go wrong here?

"Say, Eidolon?" The young warlock gave a 'Hmm?' to let her know she had his full attention. "I hope you won't mind me asking, but…" "Is it about the deal I made with Kalcifer?" She merely nodded her head, not trusting her voice to betray her fear and worry. "I made that deal because I knew that I was weak, and that I had to get stronger or I can't keep my promise." She looked to him before speaking again. "You mean… the one you made to your mother?"

 __Road to Strathome__

 _An 8 year old boy with charcoal black hair was walking alongside a woman in her late-30s, her hair cut short for reasons she would not say as they were traveling once more, never staying in one place for too long. "Son? Do you remember the story I told you about the wizard with two souls?" Eidolon looked up to her in confusion before recalling the story vaguely. "The one about the wizard with a good and bad side? Didn't you say that he was the one who created the portal that allowed the orcs through?"_

 _"_ _Yes, I did. He was a man with great power, but also carried an even greater curse. You see, when he was born, there had already been another, more powerful, soul doomed to possess him. As he had no control over what he did, even during the opening of the Dark Portal. But you see, the wizard was never truly a bad man." Her son looked confused as he spoke aloud. "Wait, if he wasn't a bad person, then why did he do all of those bad things? Didn't he know he was hurting people doing stuff like that?" She adopted a saddened smile before continuing. "I'm sure he did, which was why I believe it hurt him even more, knowing that he alone could not face against him. It hurt both him, and his friends when the time came to end the wizard. But, I believe that only the bad soul was destroyed and that the good soul, his real soul, was freed from the suffering he went through."_

 _"_ _So wait, was he a good person or a bad person?" She stopped him and kneeled to be almost eyelevel with the young boy before continuing. "Tell me child, if a good person was forced to do bad things but didn't like it, does that make him a bad person?" Getting a shake of the head, she continued. "So then, if a bad person did a good thing and likes it, what does that make them?" "A good person!" Nodding her head, she held up a hand for him to see. "Now then, with all of that in mind, I want you to make a promise to me, here and now, and I want you to uphold it no matter what." Seeing that his mother was serious, he shook his head and stood tall. "I want you to always remember, that it is not the act that defines a person, but instead-"_

"-It is the person who defines the act. I made that deal because I intend to use everything I can from it to ensure that the people I care about are kept safe, even at the cost of myself. That is the promise I made to her, and I do not intend to give up on it now."

 _"_ _Truer words never spoken, young master."_ Shocked that he heard the Fel Imp's voice again, his head was minorly assaulted by the images of a figure in black robes, whom was unknown in their identity, surrounded by rotating purple runes and an orb above them gathering their Fel Energy for a few seconds until an Imp appeared. Holding his head to make the trobbing pain go away, he looked to see that Jaina was concerned now, probably suspecting something was amiss. "Eidolon, are you okay?" After a few seconds, his head cleared up before addressing her. "I'm fine now, it's just that Kalcifer is apparently declaring that now is a good time to start on a new spell, probably the same one that brought him into this realm. Stand back for a moment, but be prepared for anything that's about come out." "Come out?" She had backed away as the same purple rotating runes appeared under his feet and an orb forming from the gathering of visible Fel Energy. "Apparently, I'm about to perform my very first summon."

_Outskirts of Andorhal, Keep base of operations_

Arthas was getting a little impatient; he had sent a footman to find and bring Jaina to him so that he could devise a battle plan for Andorhal. Scout reports had confirmed that there was a…. base of operations stationed outside of the city, and it definitely was not human. At least, not all of it. Or alive.

While he wouldn't mind Jaina's opinion on his plan of attack, he was sure that this 'Eidolon' character was not needed (or wanted in his mind) to be present for this meeting. Something about him felt wrong to the knight personally, but he could be paranoid. Then again, he was getting a lot friendlier to Jaina for his liking so he'd keep an eye out, and keep him as far away as possible from her if needed. He wanted to catch up with her on lost time, possibly get back together even. But the young prince could see that the longer it took to do so, the farther away she seemed, even if it was only by a few yards. So his plan was to have her help him with formatting a strategy in hopes to rekindle their relationship before it was too late.

Silly, silly prince. He had no idea that **that** particular battle had long since been lost before he could start.

The door to the room opened, expecting to see the footman asking for forgiveness for taking so long on finding Jaina and the woman being right behind him. Instead, to his slight irritation, it was the captain that had presented himself, with the searching footman nowhere to be found. "Captain, is there something I can help you with?" "Why yes, sir. I've been hearing that you needed to see Miss Jaina? I'm sorry to say that she has gone to do some reconnaissance about the nearby goldmine for our allies-" Arthas sighed heavily, before glaring at the man. "Captain, we don't have anyone else close by, so that gold mine should be our priority in obtaining so that we can bolster our own forces before the undead does. Now then, did she say when she would be back?" Not hearing the grumbling under the captain's breath, the advanced footman proceeded. "Exactly? No sir, but she did say to send a search party by the 2nd day. She'll probably be back before then." "*sigh* Very well then, dismissed." With a quick salute, the captain left the war room, letting the crown prince stew in his plight.

_Andorhal Wilderness_

"Well, congratulations. You've succeeded on your first summon. At least now we'll know that we won't get torn apart between the fabrics of time and space because someone forgot to put down a circle instead of a square." Eidolon, while he could tolerate words of insult headed his way sometimes, just felt that Kalcifer would always get on his nerves no matter what he did. Sighing heavily, he awaited the next set of instructions, if any, from the little imp, but the demon just took a look around before having the warlock lean in closer. "As much as I'm sure that you want to get started in learning more, I don't think the woods near hostile territory is the best thing for right now. When you get yourself a good isolated or safe area, summon me again." Seeing that it would be wise, if not paranoid, to withhold his personal plans he dismissed the demon as instructed, watching it simply fade from the world as if it was never there.

"Well, that was interesting to watch. Of all the things that the Book of Medivh said about demons, to think that there were splinter-groups from the Burning Legion…" Jaina couldn't help but wonder if the concept of a warlock outside of the Legion's grasp ever existed outside of Eidolon. Would that make him more powerful than the ones before him, due to the tight leash demons put on them or limited knowledge they were allowed? For all she knew, this could have been the closest thing to one of their high-generals standing next to her, if it wasn't for the fact that the Imp had something to do with scrambling his spell-casting abilities due to a desire to 'test him'.

"Perhaps it has something to do with this former master Kalcifer seems so keen on not talking about. It's like they their very existence is suppo-." He was far too slow to react to the noise around him, and paid for it by being tackled by a blur, facedown as he felt a familiar metal object be placed over his throat, and an even more familiar position that the attacker took while keeping him down. The figure moved closer, allowing some loose blond strands fall on one side of his head before whispering into his ear. "Captured again, Eidolon. You're making this far too easy to catch you nowadays." The voice was the final piece as he smiled and looked to the High-Elf keeping him down and pinned. "Good to see you again too, Syl."

 **Aaaand that's a wrap on that for now. So sorry for the delay from when I normally got this posted aside from my normal frequency (last time I clocked it to a little over 24 hours) and the shortness on this one this time around. Not sure why I was being slow on this one I'm normally getting stuff down and plenty of it within that span of time. And now, Sylvanas Windrunner makes her appearance outside of the Memory Lane chapter.**

 **Think Eidolon can survive both Jaina and Sylvanas being in a close proximity? Or can his not-so-demonic charisma keep them in line? Maybe they'll hit it off without a hitch and have a friendship of their own. You know, before Syl goes and…. Yea, we know that's coming eventually.**

 **Anyways, hope you guys liked it so far and, if you're feeling great about it, express your joy by leaving a review. Don't forget the Poll, as the True Challenge is neither of them going deep into romance with the guy as he jumps between Horde and Alliance to be with them while helping the factions out with their problems… as long as they don't come into conflict. Otherwise he'll be forced to take matters into his own hands.**

 **Sincerely,**

 **Ninetails927**


	8. On The Way To Andorhal - Prt II

**HELLOOOO READERRRS!**

 **Okay, not pulling a Clap-Trap on intros again any time soon XP gave a bad taste in my mouth. And made my fingers cringe.**

 **Anyways, I'd figure that I would get a head-start on the next chapter while I was still in the zone about it :D yay more words! *confetti***

 **Chapter Seven: Something Funny Happened On The Way To Andorhal – Prt II**

Jaina for one was sputtering somewhat at how casual her friend was behaving in a potential hostage situation, especially with the person holding a knife to his throat. She was about to plow a hole into their chest cavity when Eidolon was having a bit of a conversation with, apparently, her. Seeing that the 'attacker' was a High Elf, she figured that this was one of the members of the company their healers came from, but if that was the case then why the sudden hostility? "Um, excuse me, but… who are you?"

Sylvanas, now recalling the other person in their little spot in the woods, had the decency to blush at how…. Compromising their current position was, and proceeded to get off and help him back onto his own two feet. Brushing off the grass and slight dirt, the warlock covered introductions. "Jaina, this is Sylvanas Windrunner, Ranger-General of Silvermoon's armies and my only friend outside of Dalaran, second only to you actually. Syl, this is Jaina Proudmoore, special agent of the Kirin Tor, upcoming master of any and all things ice-related, and my very first friend." Hearing that he felt the need to openly say he was their friend, onto of the compliments, was a nice feeling to their hearts, until it clicked in that he had all but said that they were his only friends. That almost ruined the mood for them until their determination returned, that they would either get him more friends or always try and be there for him, in any way they could.

"Alright then, Syl, I take it that since you're here, that you were the ones who sent us the priests?" Getting a nod from the Ranger, Eidolon continued. "They're fine at the moment; taking care of the footmen and a cultist we captured to get more information from. We found a place for your company to set up a base and gather resources. Our plan is to hit Andoral, now playing host to a very hostile force, as it is the source of the plague. They have necromancers and very unique undead units, along with a former Arch-Mage leading them. I really don't want to go in there blind without reliable help, and I know for a fact that you train your Rangers well, so I was hoping you could give us a hand on this one?"

Sylvanas was relieved to see that her friend was alright, as she hadn't heard of him heading out of Dalaran; she had sent a letter to The Six to request the assistance of their warlock (in code of course for the off-chance that their letters were being intercepted), only to hear that due to complications (code for possible compromise) he was sent out until answers could be found and the leaks dealt with. So without hesitation she sent her team out in small groups, ordered to ensure the safety of civilians and assist military personnel. In the off-chance that they found the warlock, they were to signal her when they had a safe area and all teams were to gather.

From there, well she was sure that, with the two of them put together along with her Rangers, they would be able to end the plague before it killed anyone else. Probably be hailed as a hero to her people and request that Dalaran give him up so that her people would have a great protector under her wing. They would fall in love and-

Wait hold on, where was that last bit going?

Shaking her head to scatter whatever those squishy thoughts were coming from, _'_ _We're in enemy territory, keep those thoughts down until AFTER we're not risking our lives.'_ Looking around herself, she noticed that they were approaching the gold mines that Eidolon and Jaina were nice enough to secure for her forces. "You have my thanks, as well as that of Quel'Thalas once more. We will be honored to join you in battle." Taking out a small contraption that looked like a handheld pistol with a wide barrel, she aimed it at the sky and fired it off sending white smoke in contract to the darkening atmosphere.

Looking to the confused face of Jaina and a…. odd feeling from Eidolon, she decided to elaborate on the contraption. "Oh, sorry. That was something that was recently in development from Gnomregan before all communication with the kingdom was lost. They called it a 'flare gun' that could send a signal to scattered allies. That was to call the rest of the team, so they should be arriving through the night. Let's start setting up camp for now and we'll decide our next move when we have more people. And YOU" Gloved hand pointed at the warlock, "have some explaining to do about this 'security compromise' that's got you all the way out here."

It would be later in the night that, after camp was set up and a fire made to keep the cold at bay, the Ranger-General was filled in with the information of the plague's current capabilities, the cultists behind it and their leader Kel'Thuzad, the demon Kalcifer as his first Summon, but what had her worried the most was the raving madman that was going on about the world ending and, to her horror, the possibility that this man knew about Eidolon being a warlock. "I… am also worried about this man you spoke of. While it may sound like he has gone mad from this 'end of the world' talk, that cannot be the entire story to him if he knew, or suspected, about Eidolon's capabilities. Not wanting to belittle you my friend, but I can't help but worry for you. I should have been there when you had that run-in with that Abomination…" Shaking his head, the warlock looked to the worrying Sylvanas and smiled. "Then that would have been one more person I would have had to worry about. At least now, with just us and the oncoming reinforcements, I know we can beat anything that comes our way as long as we stick together."

Again, both women were warmed by his ability to acknowledge their strength, as they knew that most men wouldn't even entertain the thought of a woman besting them in combat. "So then, aside from our side of this whole problem, how have you and your rangers been fairing from this?" Sylvanas' smile faltered before she spoke. "Remember the last letter I sent you about getting Silvermoon to let me deal with the plague? We only discovered this when one of my rangers fell ill from having a simple breakfast, using the grain he had imported from Andorhal. We thought that he wasn't feeling well and let him take the day off… then it happened. He went berserk and ended up killing two more before I gave the order to put him out of his misery. Whoever or whatever is causing this, they killed three of my rangers, and every man and woman under my command wants the heads of those involved for this… cowardice."

Jaina was feeling sorry for the people who died because of this, and Eidolon felt his blood boil; he found the people of Quel'Thalas to be secluded when it came to those they could trust, but to have their loyalty like he did left a place for them in his heart. To hear that people as honorable as them to have one of their own killed in such a cowardly way… "Sylvanas, I swear that those rangers will not have died for nothing. They are good people that do not deserve such a fate like that." Sylvanas was shocked at the declaration, but the look in his said it all; in a way, they were the same when it came to their desire to protect those they cared for, regardless of race or profession. But Eidolon, he was a fighter who could break the boundaries between swordplay and spell-weaving, and perhaps one day unite all the kingdoms like they did during the First and Second War, maybe even succeed them.

"Thank you, my friend. It is good to hear that some people still care about others, even if they are kingdoms away. Now then, go ahead and get some rest, the both of you. Tomorrow, we have a base to oversee and to make contact with Arthas. Hopefully with the backing of his warriors and my archers, we can find the source and either contain or destroy this plague, once and for all." With their conversations on hold for now, Jaina settled in her tent to get some needed sleep for the chaos that would come tomorrow, as well as possibly dealing with a changed crown prince. Eidolon on the other hand stayed out for a bit longer before heading to turn in. "Syl… it's good to see you again. Goodnight."

When the warlock was out of sight, the high elf sighed before looking into the starry night sky. _'_ _Eidolon's grown up over the years. He's become so much stronger and… he looked good too.'_ She never did tell them that she had found them some time before they made contact, watching him skewer the local murlocks with nothing more than a blade and that Immolate spell she saw years ago, but these days it was much stronger than the first time he 'displayed' it to her. That little moment would stay with her to the grave, or risk having someone spread word that she had gone soft. Then again, her rangers already knew of this and always spoke highly of the young man when they got the chance to watch the many shades of red go by her face. It always got morale up when they saw that she was vulnerable to young love as everyone else.

_The next morning…_

Our young hero awoke to the muffled sounds of clamors and loud voices coming from outside. Wondering if Syl's reinforcements had arrived, he got himself dressed and took a step out…

To find a base in full operation and even a number of priests and archers trained and prepared for full combat. With Sylvanas at the head of them all giving out the plan of attack.

"…and I want this to be made perfectly clear; As much as it is against tradition for the treatment of our recently departed, I want you to destroy the corpses of any fallen comrades, or risk the necromancers defiling the remains by turning them against us. I will also have the warlock Eidolon serve as my advisor and second in command until a time that I may say otherwise. If anyone has any problems with this, step forward now and speak your mind." It was silence that greeted the now grinning Windrunner, whom had found the now awake warlock. "Alright ladies, let's great up and be ready to move in 5 minutes. DISMISSED!"

With a salute and unified shout of 'ma'am', they returned to the barracks for last minute preparations, offering a good morning to the newly-minted commander, whom by the way was still shell-shocked about the bit where he was a leader. It wasn't until Jaina came up to him and poked his arm with her staff, making him jump a little from the contact. "Okay, okay. I'm up. Slept well Jaina?" The mage held a guilty look on her face, the slight black skin under her eyes clear indication that she couldn't sleep well. "What's wrong Jaina? You know you can talk to me…" Sighing, she finally opened up to her friend, looking more fragile. "It's about Arthas. I'm afraid of how badly he will react to having outside support, but this whole operation has become far more complicated than anyone expected."

A hand met her shoulder, making her turn to see the smiling face of her friend. "Come on, you gotta try and think positive. What's the worst he can do?"

No one had any idea how badly those words would come to bite them in the future. But that's for another time.

"Alright, we're ready to move, and everyone here at the base has their orders to continue harvesting resources and directing reinforcements where needed. Let's meet up with Arthas and see what the plan is." On Sylvanas' order, Eidolon and Jaina, along with the Ranger-General and two teams of archers and priests, began their march through the wilderness. Their destination; the base operated by Arthas Menethil on the outskirts of Andorhal. Mission; destroy the plague if at all possible and eliminate all threats, but the former archmage/turned super-necromancer Kel'Thuzad would be left exclusively to the warlock and mage and, if needed, Arthas and Sylvanas running damage control to ensure that no one died… or at least made sure that they wouldn't be raised as the undead. Whichever came first.

They hoped that it would end with the necromancer's head on a pike and leave it at that.

_Later, Human Alliance base: Outskirts of Andorhal_

Unfortunately, another complication decided to rear its ugly head back.

"Absolutely not." "What right do you have to deny him entry to this meeting? He is my second in command, Arthas, and therefore is required to consult to me any advice and/or complication with the plan of attack." "What experience does he have leading people into battle?" "Who made you the deciding factor on who does and doesn't have experience being a leader?!"

Arthas Menethil, earlier that day, had been worried about if Jaina was alright, only to hear from a scout that a sizeable force of high elves were at the base's flank and offering their assistance with this scourge problem. However, the second he saw who was with the ranger forces, he just knew that this would end badly and was now all but banishing Eidolon from the War Room. Something that neither Jaina nor Sylvanas took kindly too, and only the Ranger-General had the gall to call him out on it. Since then, neither of them looked like they were getting anywhere until Jaina flashed a fireball between them to make it all stop. "ENOUGH! The enemy forces won't sit aside and wait for us to finish bickering and may continue to grow by the hour unless we can put all of this aside and focus on what matters. That plague is not going to kill itself, so both of you shut up and get inside!"

Needless to say they complied with the scary sorceress and everyone, including Eidolon to the prince's dismay due to Jaina making a last second grab for the warlock and dragging him along, went inside the war room to commence planning.

"Alright, so scout reports suggest that there is a base just outside of the only entrance to Andorhal on our side of the area. I would have suggested the nearby bridge but, due to the scouting mission Jaina and…. Eidolon underwent, it's out of commission and only leaves us with a frontal assault. Now, the plan is a simple push formation; footmen locking up to keep any undead from getting past them, while the riflemen and archers shoot them all down, with the priests maintaining the footmen's survival and mortar teams in the rear to take down the structures. Any input on the matter, Jaina?"

She overlooked the board, then amongst those present. As it was his idea, Arthas didn't look any different on the matter so she focused on the other two occupants of the room; Sylvanas was looking around the possible area of the attack, but Eidolon… was looking in the wooded area? It seemed that his focus on mostly around the woods near where the large structure- a Halls of the Dead the interrogated cultist was nice enough to tell them about- was stationed along with several structures used to train and/or construct their undead army. "Eidolon, what's got your attention over there?"

Noticing that he now had the attention of everyone there, he pointed out some of the structures, one looking like a graveyard. "Well, recall that our cultist friend in his prison cell had information on some of their forces, one of which is more necromancers. One of the structures we'll be running into is designated as a graveyard, where it can become the ultimate form of defense with just a few of these necromancers whom can continuously spawn more and more skeletons. As I'm sure that our current force is formidable, they won't have to even so much as lift a finger as we'll be stuck fighting a near-endless horde of undead. And that will be well before we can get the mortar teams in range of any buildings to shoot at. But, the forest does surround the base a good way on the left….. How about we initiate Pincer 42, Sylvanas?"

She looked to him in slight confusion before she recalled all the times they came up with unusual methods and had a codename of sorts set up for each one to remember them by. Recalling the details, she looked over the map once more before smiling. "Alright, I see where you're going with this. But I would advise we give them a small team in case the skeletons end up growing a brain." He smiled before noticing the confused looks from the other two humans before elaborating. "Pincer 42 was a formation Sylvanas and I ended up conjuring during my stay at Silvermoon; it's basically having a large force act as the diversion as a 2nd smaller team sabotage and/or destroy the enemy base, mostly from a farther off range or behind the perfect defensive formation. The priority here will be their Halls of the Dead and their acolytes, as they can just summon a structure from further in and causing more problems in the future. After that, the team can retrace back near the front lines and take down both necromancers and that graveyard. All in two sweeps, then we can clear out and take over the area to fortify a defensive line in front of the entrance. I'll personally oversee the strike team and make sure no complications occur. Any objections?"

Arthas, as much as he wanted to argue against it, knew that it was a solid plan; he and the men holding the front while a team sneaks around and blows the base into oblivion. Jaina was fully in favor of the plan, as it was better than tiring themselves out over a bunch of skeletons that kept on coming up two feet in front of them. "I think we have our plan then. However I suggest you get your pathways set up first before we begin our attack." "Understood. I'll have the men ready to go within the hour."

"Then we have our plan. Sound the call captain, within the hour we march." With a nod from the officer, everyone broke off to make their preparations, well Arthas did while Sylvanas and Jaina approached Eidolon whom was overlooking the map once more. "Alright Ei, you only gave Pincer a 40 while the two was to signal that you had another plan. So what's on your mind?" Eidolon grinned, glad that Sylvanas was still brushing up on their codes as he turned to the table. "Kalcifer had informed me the last time I summoned him that he had several spells that belong to a category of Warlock abilities called Destruction. Apparently, Rain of Fire and Immolate are the first of those spell types, and there is yet more to learn from it. But also, he said that he and I could form a Soul Link, where the both of us would act in unison while still being able to move independently. I want to keep the plan going, but I will be the strike team."

Jaina was looking worried at the fact that her friend was literally declaring that he would go solo on a mission this dangerous, but she knew that the best way to learn something new was to put it to practice. "Alright, I also approve of the plan. But, if you get yourself hurt or killed…. You are in huge trouble." The glare from the Sorceress unnerved the Warlock, making him sweat while he laughed weakly. "Yes ma'am. Understood."

 **There we are, another chapter. I wanted to again apologize for taking so long on making these posts, but I supposed it is to be expected from here on out until otherwise.**

 **Alright. I'll be sure to get to work on the next chapter soon. Until then, hang in there guys. I've seen how many people were interested in the story (breaking 1000 views last I saw so I'm really happy people want to read this XD) and once again I am honored that you guys are interested and keep coming back for more! So I hope to meet that expectation of myself and my work, and I'll see you guys soon.**

 **Sincerely,**

 **Ninetails927**


	9. On The Way To Andorhal - Finale

**Alright you all know the drill: I don't own Warcraft or WoW; Blizzard does. Now then, let us begin.**

 **Chapter Eight: Something Funny Happened On The Way To Andorhal – Prt III**

It was dark out, and two necromancers were standing guard near the graveyard within the perimeter of their base, which was the farthest south of all the other structures. Its sole purpose was to act as the ultimate defense against any and all attackers, as they could use the corpses that the structure would find deep within the earth and drag them within its perimeter. The science behind it would take up all day and night just to try and explain, and much longer for one to comprehend it to be physically possible, so let's just say 'because its magic; what other explanation is there?', and continue on.

"We have been stationed here for three days now, and still there's nothing here to defend against. I understand that Kel'Thuzad is trying to get the grain moved out, but surely we should have seen some kind of alliance force by now." "It is best not to question the command of Kel'Thuzad, or would you rather be made into additional labor?" Both of them shuddered at the thought of being turned into a ghoul; worst form of a demotion, but more permanent. "Regardless, we have our orders, and therefore shall carry them out."

Unknown to the two of them, there was a transparent floating green eye with a black slit at the center, watching the two before moving further into the base…

_Not so far off, in the woods close to the Undead base…_

Eidolon was keeping himself stationary, one eye closed as the recently summoned Kalcifer watched the warlock with twisted glee, or at least it looked like it. "Yes, well done. As you can see, the **Eye of Kilrogg** , while it doesn't have a mind of its own or carry combat capabilities, is much more dangerous by acting as reconnaissance; cloaking as well as finding anything that is… hidden to the naked eyes. This takes away any enemy's element of surprise, allowing you to save more lives." Yes, he had to prey on the young man's desire to protest instead of just destroy, but at least it got the job done to get him to learn some of the more… collateral-based spells. "Now then, I believe we've wasted enough time on this for now; you can perfect it at a later date. We should be hitting those two places you've been meaning to take on. I warn you though; that Hall of the Damned won't go down easily."

Eidolon finally opened his other eye, the Fel radiating inside of it fading away in a few seconds before looking towards said hall, glaring at it as he performed the Soul Link with the Fel Imp, finding himself in a state of mind compared to that of a pyromaniac with one directive; burn the Hall to a cinder, along with the enemy. He breathed out hot air, a grin forming on his face as he slammed both hands on the earth. What came out of it was two spells being performed at once; The Rain of Fire that was taking care of the cultists harvesting from the nearby haunted mines, but the Hall of the Damned was being hit by something else entirely.

You see, when Kalcifer took the Link with Eidolon, the Fel Imp had knowledge of some of the more… destructive spells that a warlock could learn, but as it turned out his 'master' just wasn't strong enough to control it. That didn't mean that it was impossible to cast, as he had more than enough Fel to execute it. So the spell he channeled through him caused the earth beneath the Hall to crack and slowly rise up, something red and hot glowing just beneath the surface before it shot up and out. A miniature volcano-earthquake destroyed the foundation of the large structure, making it fall apart and dematerialize in an explosion of green particles and shattered runes.

Eidolon, who now saw that the structures were dealt with, cut off the link and fell to his knees in exhaustion, before looking to his summon. "What… did you… make me do?" The Fel Imp was laughing as he approached the downed warlock. "That, good sir, was one of the highest tiers of a warlock's spellcasting: Cataclysm. Channeling the Fel into the very earth can allow the user to spawn a perimeter of fire and chaos under the enemy's feet almost without warning… then detonates. But I'm sure this can all be told at a much later time as we are on the clock, and in enemy territory still."

_With the Strike Team outside of Undead Base_

Arthas, Jaina and Sylvanas, along with the soldiers and healers, had to keep themselves balanced as they felt the aftershock of the Cataclysm spell, as well as a nice view of the massive structure that came crashing down before vanishing in a flash of green. "By the Light…" Arthas was rather shocked about the sudden destruction, but Jaina and Sylvanas were more amazed by the display of power from their warlock friend. "Oh my… just what is that little Imp teaching him to go and do that?" Jaina wasn't sure on how to answer the High Elf's question, but it was clear that his new mentor was teaching him well… for now. "Arthas, now is the time."

Getting a nod from the prince, he raised his Warhammer and pointed it at the opposing base. "Alright men, the time has come. Let's show these undead how REAL warriors fight!" Getting a warcry from the soldiers, their march began to destroy the rest of the base, as the two necromancers were shot down in seconds by the Ranger-General.

_An Hour Later_

It was well after the fight was done, and now there were sentries stationed just outside of Andorhal along with a small base to replenish on more gold and lumber; better them than the enemy. Eidolon was shown questioning looks form the women, whom was lucky enough to dismiss the Fel Imp before the rest of the forces arrived, and simply said that 'he'll explain under better circumstances' before Arthas came along. "Alright, now that we have a good perimeter set up here, let's get inside and find out what's really going on."

_Andorhal_

The party of four heroes, six footmen, four healers, three dwarven marksmen and equal amount of High Elven archers, and two mortar teams made their way into the heart of the burning remains of a once buzzling city, with barely a corpse in sight. They had a good idea on why, but they didn't want to think about it as they soon found several ghouls consuming from the near-empty piles of grain, among them was Kel'Thuzad, who turned to face them with a grin. "Hello again, children. I see you've managed to make it this far, but I must deliver to you a warning: leave well enough alone. Your curiosity will be the death of you." Arthas marched up to the front of the part and glared hate at the former Arch-Mage. "Are you responsible for this plague necromancer? Is this cult YOUR doing?"

A chuckle from the necromancer was heard before he replied. "Yes, I ordered the Cult of the Damned to distribute the plagued grain…. But the sole credit is not mine." Jaina was confused on the matter, but still glared at the elder. "What do you mean?" "You see, I serve the dreadlord Mal'Ganis. He is the one who commands this Scourge that will cleans the land and establish a paradise of eternal darkness." "And what is this Scourge meant to cleanse?" The old wizard looked to the outspoken warlock and raised his staff, making the carved black dragon's eyes glow green. "Why, the living, of course. His plans are already in motion, however, but you are free to try and stop it. IF you live to see it, that is…" He made his exit as the small horde of ghouls began to charge at his command, intending to shred and consume the flesh of the living.

Eidolon was the first to shot out. "SHIELD FORMATION! Shoot these freaks back into their graves!" He fired a Shadowbolt when the marksmen opened fire, shredding apart most of the charging horde of undead before a wave of Blizzard stopped them all in their tracks. "Alright, let's go hunt ourselves a necromancer." Sylvanas spotted the retreating necromancer and took aim, but was interrupted by a rising skeleton soldier that went in for a cleaver strike. She dodged that, but it used its shield to bash her into the ground. Before it could take this advantage, a sword found itself lodged into its shield…. and skull, falling apart in seconds. She was soon helped up by Eidolon, who went and reclaimed his sword. "Careful Syl, these guys don't fight fair, and neither should we." Getting a nod from her, they continued to push on.

They found his trail to have gone shortly outside of Andorhal, where they found a defensive formation of ghouls and skeletal archers. Footmen had to bunker down while they marched on to protect the others from flying arrows, while their own archers and marksmen retuned fire in kind, ending with Jaina raining down Blizzards upon their heads until the formation broke apart. It was further in, however, that they ran into a real problem. "Oh come on, not more of those things!" Indeed, because further up ahead was a small battalion of Abominations. "Mortar teams, rain fire on that structure; it's making more of these fat bastards. Jaina, Sylvanas, on me; we need to hold the line until the mortar teams can take down that structure."

The women agreed with the Prince's command, but then they noticed that they were down a person. A very important person to them. "Wait, where is Eidolon?" Arthas took a quick scan around, then growled out in rage. "Did he really just abandon us now of all times?!"

_With said Warlock…_

Eidolon was sprinting around the fight to try and cut off the retreating Necromancer and found him waiting around a throne made of stone. "Kel'Thuzad!" The older man looked to the approaching figure and laughed aloud. "Well, it seems we're finally alone at last…. Warlock." The sounds of combat and mortar fire could be heard, but it was ignored and not in sight as the two sorcerers of their respective magic stared down the other. "So you finally found the answer of greater power, my old mentor. Northrend really did have the answers you sought out. Although I'm surprised that your still alive… mostly" "Yes, but I am more than I once was, young Eidolon. I have the knowledge over death, and the source of it all." The young man decided to change the subject as he looked into the glowing green eyes. "But I rather doubt that a demon of all things would 'command' this Scourge of yours."

Kel'Thuzad laughed aloud at the declaration before replying. "My my, you truly have become wiser in my absence… good to know. Yes, while Mal'Ganis is officially in command of the Scourge acting in this region… he is not the true master over the undead. Unfortunately you may not live long enough to see it!" He cast out a green orb made into a laughing skull that the warlock had to dodge who shot out a Shadow Bolt in return, only for it to bounce off of a quick defensive spell. "A spell without channeling… you really have grown over the years. It's a shame I could not bring you with me; you would have made an excellent necromancer." "Save it for someone who CARES!" He shot out another Shadow Bolt that was again reflected, but the wizened necromancer had to use his staff to block the oncoming sword swing. The two kept the clash going for a few seconds more before they had to break it up, leaving the old wizard exposed to a swing at his thigh… only to be shot back from a blast of arcane. "Just because I now serve the undead doesn't meant that I haven't refined my own skills as an Arch-Mage."

"Good to know, because I got a few new tricks up my sleeve too." Eidolon waved his hand over the necromancer, who's magic-negating barrier was now caught aflame, threatening to destroy it and get at him from the inside. Kel acted quickly and used a frost nova to put out the flames, but he wasn't quick enough to recover from the onslaught inside his head from Agony. However, he was still stable enough to stop the blade from hitting his stomach, but he wasn't prepared for when a hand was pressed over his face and felt… something be pulled from him. _'_ _Oh god; he's draining the life-force right out of me!'_ He shot another bolt of the laughing skull point blank, causing him to dislodge the draining warlock. The connection lasted for a few seconds more before fading, leaving Eidolon with some damaged clothes but otherwise he didn't show any pain. Not that there was any to show after the lingering Life Drain.

"I am amazed Eidolon, truly you have become an impressive force to be reckoned with, but this is where it ends." He began to charge up for one of his larger attacks to strike down the warlock… only to find the hilt of a long sword sticking into his chest cavity. "It does end… for you."

It was here that the rest of the alliance forces arrived to watch the old necromancer try to keep his footing as his chest bled out what little blood he had left in his body. "Fools, my death means little to Mal'Ganis' plans for Strathome, or the advance of the Scourge. For, now, the scourging of this land…. Begins…" Finally, he fell onto his side as his body began to decay quickly until nothing but bone was left.

Sighing heavily, Eidolon dropped to one knee… only to be kicked onto the ground via angry Arthas. "I should have your head caved in right now for your actions." Sylvanas wasn't having any of it as she stepped between the two and glared down at the much younger human. "Stand down, Arthas. He was acting under my command, so therefore he is **my** responsibility, not yours. And if you have yet to notice," she turned to the still downed warlock and pointed out the damage that still remained of the two spell-caster's conflict. "He managed to keep the enemy leader from retreating to wreak havoc another day, and even managed to kill a former, but still powerful, Arch-Mage. Don't go and tell me that you would have been able to pull such a similar feat off by yourself, prince." When the young warlock finally got himself upright, he was soon facing down the neutral stare from the Ranger-General. "While you did indeed pull off an impressive feat, I will have to advise that you refrain from charging after the enemy again… at least, not without my rangers for back-up. Is that understood, Eidolon?" Getting a 'yes ma'am', she turned to the seething Knight with a smirk that said 'I got you now brat.' "There, the situation has been rectified. For now, however, we must be making our way to Strathome. Something about how that necromancer said that we were free to try and stop it leaves me unsettled."

She called out to her rangers to get their gear and prepare to move out, whom was soon followed by Eidolon and "Wait, Jaina?" The sorceress looked with rage at the crown prince, not bothering to answer him before moving along to catch up with the high-elves. In his slightly depressed state, he gave his men orders to clean up around Andorhal and burry what fallen they could find. Moving quickly he followed after the high-elves further along the King's Road to their next destination. And possibly some more answers about the Scourge and Mal'Ganis.

_Hearthglen_

It was in the next rising morning that we find a company of high-elven archers and priests following their Ranger-General, her second-in-command, the agent of the Kirin Tor and Crown Prince into the village of Hearthglen, where they could see that dwarves and footmen were having their morning training routine. Jaina sighed heavily as she leaned on her staff for support, while Sylvanas and Eidolon helped her remain steady. "Hearthglen, finally. I could use a rest from that." Hearing a chuckle from her supporters, she shot a heated glare at the two, but was also surprised that the warlock was still up and moving. "Before you ask Jaina, I've started physical training during my stay in Quel'Thalas, and I've continued to do so ever since. It's also why I was able to keep up on my swordplay from Master Hawke." Shaking her head, Arthas finally spoke up as he watched the village's soldiers working out. "It looks like they're preparing for battle."

When they entered the village, one of the footmen approached Arthas with a worried look. "Prince Arthas! During the night, a vast army of undead warriors began attacking villages at random. Now it's headed this way!" The four heroes were looking worried now as they looked to one another. "Dammit, Jaina I need you to go and-"

"That won't be necessary." Looking to the spell-caster that dared to interrupt him at a time like this, he noticed that Eidolon was using his finger to slightly burn letters into a piece of paper before rolling it around the hilt, sealing it in place with a mark from the Kirin Tor, and began charging his Fel into the blade. One trick that Kalcifer taught him when he was told about the blade, was that it was possible to use its blinking capabilities to reach specific people at insanely high speeds. So with a few alterations to the runes applied to it, the Javelin was now the single most quickest method of sending messages across the entire kingdom of Lordaron. "Who am I sending this message to?"

Before Arthas could answer, it was Jaina who looked on in amazement and curiosity that answered. "Name is Uther Lightbringer, leader of the Silver Hand." Getting the sword into position, he chanted the name over and over as he charged the blade with Fel, making it glow in an ominous green. "Uther Lightbringer, Leader of The Silver Hand. Now GO!" With a powerful throw, the trajectory of the blade was blocked by many circular runes that spun midair and, upon the sword's contact with it, flashed out of existence entirely. "With any luck, depending upon the distance, it should take about half an hour if he's in Lordaron. Wow, I am exhausted, gimme a second to…"

Falling to his hands and knees in exhaustion, which made the two heroines flock to his side, Arthas looked towards the crates of grain, noticing that something was… odd about them. When he spotted the contents, he looked to the footman he spoke to earlier. "What were in those crates?" Looking confused, the footman replied anyways. "Those carried grain from Andorhal. Don't worry, milord, it was safely distributed to the villagers." "Oh no."

Sylvanas was the first to see, and act, when she saw almost all of the villagers twitch on their feet, looking like they were having a seizure. When their skin turned green and began to make a move to those who weren't also becoming the same thing, she pulled out her bow and let an arrow fly in a heartbeat, nailing it between the eyes. "Everyone! The plague doesn't kill people; it turns them into the undead! DEFEND YOURSELVES!"

Just another bad day for Eidolon, and he was cursing his luck profusely as he was soon charged at by 8 other 'villagers'.

 **Apologies for the cliffhanger, but I needed to get this posted out to make sure that the story doesn't die. But, I'm still working on it gladly and I hope to still do so for some time.**

 **Anyways, there you have it; Jaina wasn't forced to leave when the Defending of Hearthglen happened, but now our heroic warlock is without his only other weapon, which may risk his exposure to better defend himself and the village. What will he do? How would Arthas or even Uther react to the truth? Okay, Arthas would be obvious, but Uther is definitely debatable.**

 **Please go ahead and leave a review if you liked it and/or any possible fixes I may need to look over: I know I'm not perfect when it comes to stuff like this and I'm willing to admit it. That is always the first step to learn and overcome your obstacles. Also, keep in mind that I have a poll set up for whom Eidolon will be pairing with, and by extension joining their faction, when the Final Hour comes down to it. I hope you liked it and I'll be sure to work on the next chapter soon.**

 **Sincerely,**

 **ninetails927**


	10. Siege of Hearthglen The Truth Revealed!

**I'm so sorry that this took so long on getting some air time, but I've been having some trouble on how to map out the story for one, and with all of the family business going on in the last moth it's been hard to focus on this. I have a life to live, and therefore can't spend as much time as I please on this.**

 **Also, I can't help but notice that, regardless on whatever the final pairings may be, you want the three to remain as friends, and I can see why; Jaina becomes isolated due to her Anti-Horde campaign falling apart in the upcoming Legion expansion, and Sylvanas struggles to find some meaning into the her, and by extension the Forsaken's, prolonged existence after having Arthas dealt with. With at least a medium for both to focus on, they can at least be steered into the right path that they can make use of and actually be supportive. So in regards to that, I agree and support your suggestion on the matter; regardless of whatever happens, Eidolon, Jaina and Sylvanas shall remain friends.**

 **And with that, onto the story.**

Chapter IX: Siege Of Hearthglen: The Truth Revealed?!

"EIDOLON!" Jaina had acted quickly by blinking to place herself between her warlock friend and the small horde of zombie villagers, gathering her power to fire a Cone of Cold that froze them all in their tracks. Seeing that they were stopped, she blinked into the center of the frozen formation and released an Arcane Nova from her person, shattering the undead into pieces. As Arthas and the others dealt with the rest of the undead, both Sorceress and Ranger-General gathered up with the now rising Warlock, intent on finding a way to survive the coming onslaught.

Arthas, unfortunately, had to be the bearer of bad news. "It's apparent that the grain is capable of turning my people into the undead, and that attack just costed us almost all of the soldiers stationed here aside from a few footmen and the workers. We need to hold out until Uther can arrive with reinforcements… however long that takes. Workers, we need structures to train and supply more men than this if we're going to make it. I want sentries upgraded the soonest that we can. Let's MOVE!"

As the Crown Prince was barking out orders, the other three heroes were having a bit of a dilemma themselves. "Eidolon, why would you risk yourself with getting that message to Uther? I could have found him myself…" The young man shook his head as he looked to the two. "It's better if we can stick together if at all possible. We're going to need everyone we can get to if we plan to survive, plus that blade wasn't the only weapon I wield." Jaina sighed before having to point out the elephant in the room. "But you know that some of your spells are… not exactly lite on using Fel. Uther's had a history on battling against that kind of magic and if he finds out what you are…." Sylvanas took this as an opportunity. "If that prick for a prince so much as tries an arrest, then Eidolon's leaving with me back to Quel'Thalas, where he can safely be escorted back to Dalaran if push comes to shove on the matter. I refuse to lose any more people to this… madness"

Eidolon for one was a little surprised by the Ranger-General's forward thinking with a situation like that. Surely Uther would not want to risk a civil war with the High elves stacked on top of the Scourge with their undead armies. "As good as that kind of forward thinking is, let's stick to the present for now and deal with what happens later, later. Now how are we going to deal with this mess?"

Both women looked to one another hoping that either one had something, but everything briefly blacked out for the warlock when he felt a voice hit his head. It was the same way he first heard Kalcifer, but this felt… immovable, like a barrier had been formed and didn't allow him to leave. _"_ _I believe it is my turn now with the task of testing your skill, young warlock. Let us see how you persist against this tidal wave of death…."_ Just like that, the presence was gone, but he was sure it was watching him now. He looked to the two just seconds away from exploding at the other before he broke their focus. "Jaina, Syl…. I think another demon has come into contact with me. It's similar to how Kalcifer made first contact, but it felt different, like a wall that just wouldn't go down. And it's watching us right now."

The two women looked around for anything suspicious, but they couldn't find the source of their worries so it was left alone for now. "As long as it doesn't hinder your performance like that Kalcifer did, then I hope we can survive the onslaught. RANGERS!" She shouted out to her company who moved quickly to form a line, standing at attention and awaiting orders. "Prepare a defensive perimeter around the village; this is a bunker and trench warfare as of now so let's hustle ladies!"

While defenses were being built, they had to deal with random waves from the various undead, being lucky that the Priests and Archers that came with Windrunner only resulted in one casualty; an overzealous footman decided to break formation when it looked that the undead forced had been dealt with. He never saw the necromancers striking him down with unholy magic, only to reanimate his corpse to fight his comrades. Of course the slight abomination was taken down in seconds under a hail of arrows, but it started to break the men's morale before Arthas got them all back in formation. It was showing that the fact that his people were being used as fodder by the Scourge was getting to the young prince, which was being vented in Eidolon's lack of performance.

"I keep telling you, it would be reckless to just fling a spell with such destructive force and, need I remind you, collateral damage to our own forces. I will not use them with soldiers laying down their lives so close! Now, about that scout report…"

"Absolutely not! It's one thing that you refuse the direct order of a superior, but now you dare make demands of me about going out playing vigilante against an entire convoy? Believe me, I'd rather go after them personally for turning the nearby villages into undead, but we don't have the resources, or men, to afford such an attempt. You are hereby remaining in this base until I say otherwise! That's an order, and end of discussion!"

"Arthas, listen to yourself! Every village they convert is more reinforcements for the Scourge to throw at us. If they hit every surrounding village, then Uther will be mopping up a graveyard by the time he gets here!" In frustration, Eidolon barged out of the war room and slammed the door behind him, making it jam in place as he stormed out to the goldmine leaning near the entrance as he stood guard over the workers, which helped in boosting their morale somewhat knowing that they had a powerful spell-caster watching over them.

"That went well." Sighing, the warlock looked to a nearby shadow that soon revealed the Ranger-General, armed to the teeth and battle-ready for anything. "I take it that our esteemed Crown Prince has decided against sending support to the nearby villages? I don't want to sound like the prick, but we can't thin out our forces like that." She received a questioning glare before she decided to shed more light onto the subject. "Which is why my scouts confirmed that the caravan is the only thing threatening the bordering villages; the two primary bases are solely focused on Hearthglen, and nothing else. So a small strike team can, and will, destroy that caravan and allow the villages to escape the oncoming conflict hitting this area."

Now he was interested, and appreciative of her cooperation on the matter, as he felt disgusted when Arthas had condemned the bordering villages with such little resistance. "So who's going after them?" She eyed him curiously, making one of her long eyebrows quirk up. "That's it? No insistence that you come along as well?" Now his sour mood reared its ugly head for her to see. "Unfortunately, due to our esteemed Knight's oh so wise decision, I have been forbidden from making any move to the defensive lines." Sylvanas' mood shifted to anger, so slowly that the young warlock had to back away in slight fear of her retaliation. "Oh, did he now? He thinks he can command one of MY officers like that, and expects to get away with it? When we come back, he and I WILL have words."

As Eidolon and Sylvanas were geared up and ready to head on out they ran into Jaina, whom was also packed for combat, which confused the warlock but made the ranger-general smirk. "What? You think that I'm going to let you go alone? We were both sent on this mission together by Master Antonidas, and I fully intend to make sure we go back the same way." With logic being the deciding factor on that, plus he kinda feared the stink-eye she was giving him when he was saying anything short of 'yes ma'am', they double-checked that the soldiers stationed at the far north-west were in good condition and set out into the wilderness.

It was a few minutes in that the only male in the party was getting the same feeling back in the base, but this time it was much stronger, much like it was right on top of their-

"Grettings at long last, young warlock." The deep ominous voice behind them set them all at edge, turning around to face…. They were not sure what it was that they were looking at. Eidolon knew only from the Book of Medivh that this was supposed to be a Voidwalker, but this had actual armor pieces attach to its body; chest plate along with wristguards and shoulder pads, but there was nothing visible that connected all the pieces to others, or keeping them on the smoke-like body. Its white orbs for eyes scanned the battle-ready trio, but focused on the male human who looked hesitant now. "Wait, so you're the one who was watching me-" "Ever since you set foot in Heathglen, yes. I can feel a wicked presence around you… I take it that Kalcifer has made contact with you? The crafty little bugger always liked making deals to ensure his own survival and freedom. I on the other hand am more… practical in my bargains."

This piqued their interests as they began to lower their weapons, but remained on guard; they were still in undead territory. "I take it that you too wish to make a deal with me?" A hearty chuckle escaped the purple menace before answering. "On the contrary, I am actually paying a debt to an old friend. Our little… merry band of demons were given freedom- true freedom- from the clutches of the Burning Legion, in exchange for our services and assistance when called upon." Sylvanas looked skeptical at the supposedly short end of the stick that the demons were given for this one person. "Hold on, that doesn't seem right. To have the services of demons, prolonged even, for a tradeoff for something like freedom? That seems…"

The demon looked to the High Elf before responding. "Insignificant compared to what we can do? Then you know little of how demons behave in an individual level; after an unimaginable amount of time doing nothing but killing and manipulating, it gets rather… dull after a time. We were not the first to break away from the endless horde of the Burning Legion, and I am certain that we will not be the last." This had Jaina's interest now as Eidolon had to break up the banter. "Alright, I can kind of understand that; a change of pace if anything else, but why offer yourself to me so freely? I would expect another challenge or something of the sort."

The Voidlord laughed some before calming himself. "I had offered my services to my master for years and have always obeyed without question, and I must say that it does heal the soul for the likes of myself. During my master's final moments, we were all asked to assist you when the time came, but the method to do so was left in the open. So we decided amongst ourselves that we would test you in our own way. So you see, you have been tested already, and have passed mine. Your desire to protect the weak, even if against direct order, even in the face of death itself, is commendable to your courage. As such, you have my sworn loyalty to you and your cause." They exchanged handshakes, which shot power into the young warlock's arm and body, before the Voidlord melted into his shadow, his voice echoing in the woods as he faded away. _"_ _I am Darbus, the Voidlord. When called upon, I shall be the impenetrable wall that guards and protest you and yours."_

After a few moments to gather their bearings, they began their march to the village that was mapped to be the last place for the caravan to hit. When they made it clear that an impending Undead attack was coming, the entire village evacuated and headed south where most of the forces left behind at Andorhal were setting up sanctuaries for civilians while dealing with what little stragglers remained. With that settled, they made their way East where the next village was stationed at, but they had received reports that a village had already fallen to the caravan, and that they were next.

"We can't hold out here, not like this. Even with everyone preparing to leave the caravan will be upon them before everyone can get out." Eidolon looked around the small town that was soon to be deprived of its people then down the path where the caravan was expected to arrive from. "Then we set up an ambush; I will not allow these people to be violated into the undead." He looked down, a depressing aura emanating from him. "We already failed one village…"

Jaina laid a hand on his right shoulder, and Sylvanas punted his left gently before they all looked down the intended pathway. "Well, we can't be there to save every last person Eidolon, so we just have to save the ones we can and hope for the best." Getting a nod from the youngest of the group they made their way down the path while trying to form a plan. "I think now is the time that we put my new contracts to use…. Once we get far enough away."

True to his word, once they reached a distance they were far enough away, as night was also crawling upon them, he channeled the Fel at his disposal and, after a bit longer than usual, completed the summoning spell for the two demons…. Which left them utterly shocked by it. "Wait hold on… how did you do that?!" Looking confused, Eidolon looked between the demons wondering why they were surprised. "Um… what are you talking about?" Kalcifer was the first to recover, a tick mark growing on his head. "What do you not understand about this situation?! You've summoned more than one demon at once; how does that not register to you at all?" "Yea, I did summon you both, but it took a little more time and power than usual. So what?"

Darbus decided to be the voice of clarity here for the young warlock. "Eidolon, you must understand…. Summoning and maintaining more than one demon in this plane is supposed to be impossible. The only one who could manage such a feat was actually our former master. I am starting to see why we were asked to join you…" "Alright, you guys keep on saying something about your former master, but you clearly don't want to say anything important about them; Darbus, I'm starting to question on why an orc would care about helping people at all if they-" The dark purple entity shook his head before speaking above the warlock. "Human. Our former master was a human." This stunned the whole group into silence, but Kalcifer kept any questions from coming up. "Don't we have a caravan to destroy?"

That snapped them back into attention, but he made it clear that he would have answers later as they scouted ahead to see what they were looking at. The results; a few necromancers, skeletons, three Meat Wagons and two acolytes to orchestrate the whole thing. "Alright, here's the plan; we'll set up some traps for the front wagon and whatever else may be close, and then bombard the rest of them with wide area attacks. Once the two waves are done, Sylvanas and Darbus will close in and finish off the remaining stragglers while Jaina and I provide support and run damage control. Sylvanas, you still have any traps left?" The Ranger-general grinned as she fiddled with a few as Jaina provided some supportive insight. "I can also use Ring of Frost as a part of the trap, to at least halt the necromancers from spawning any more troops." "Good idea Jaina. Antonidas was right; you are becoming the best of Dalaran's mages." The blond sorceress managed to suppress a blush from the compliment as they began to move further up ahead of the caravan. "Alright, let's make some magic happen."

The Acolytes and Necromancers were feeling all giddy today; they've been tasked by their master, Mal'Ganis, to hit small villages in the surrounding area around Hearthglen to hopefully stall if not outright slaughter the Alliance force that was stationed nearby by using their own people against them, living or otherwise. No more mind games, no cloak-and-dagger , just a good old slaughter fit for a homicidal maniac. And the next village was just in sight-

If only they noticed the number of green and one large blue rune circle sparking to life under their feet.

The next few seconds threw them all into chaos; rocks of fire fell from the sky as the front of the caravan was killed by a flash freeze, coating the front two Wagons with enough ice to lodge the firing mechanisms. "Find the attackers and- Guh!" The necromancer was of no challenge to the oncoming arrow that lodged itself into his throat, choking him in his own blood as a lone High Elf and massive purple-armored entity entered the fray, taking down the skeletal minions as Eidolon, Kalcifer and Jaina proceeded to open fire on the bony bowmen with a variety of spells.

The three remaining necromancers had the intelligence to hide behind a small force of skeletons, ghouls and the now-firing Meat Wagon as they agreed to use the stashed corpses from the unholy construct. While firing it's salvo against the two adversaries, the death-dealing wagon opened up a compartment that dropped several dead bodies- courtesy of the last village and their stock from the last outpost they visited- which let the dark wizards do their magic (not sure if that was a pun but if so I apologize XO). Soon they had a steady flow of skeletal minions throwing themselves at the two melee targets. However, Darbus was an immovable object that took blow for blow, only to return it tenfold as Sylvanas' years of being a ranger were paying off in her agility and flexibility, not even letting a single attack connect to her while she dealt fatal blows to all in her way.

While the spell-casters were providing cover fire for their melee fighters, Jaina couldn't help but notice that her warlock friend was beginning to… radiate some kind of power. When she looked his direction for just a moment, she couldn't stop the look of shock coming to the surface as his body was leaking out some kind of purple wisp, but it wasn't just one strand. "Eidolon, are you…?" The warlock risked a look in her direction, his face bearing that of a person who was straining against something, his green eyes glowing slightly brighter than normal as he was visibly shaking from the amount of pressure coming from himself. "Jaina."

Both didn't see the oncoming salvo from the Wagon impacting right in the middle of their position, the explosion scattering the ranged supporters. Being the first to stand mostly upright, if not rising from his knees, he looked to see that he was covered in blood, but what made his world collapse was the unmoving Proudmoore, heavily coated in the red fluid.

Now, bear in mind, Jaina was not dead; the kinetic force of the impact just knocked her out, and as a demoralizing tactic, the Meat Wagon's salvo's were stuffed with blood in the mixture so as to break them of their fighting spirit. This instance, however, was most certainly NOT in the Undead's favor.

 _'_ _Jaina….. She's…'_ His eyes widened in horror as his brain made the false connection. _'…_ _no…'_

Sylvanas noticed that her fire support had halted after that last shot, looking to see that Eidolon and Jaina were injured, and just now noticed the purple wisps growing thicker as the warlock shook from his spot. _'_ _No.'_

Tears were now streaking down his face as the wisps of power began to swirl around him, growing in speed and intensity as Kalcifer was grinning, but soon displayed his own shock as he felt something beginning to be unleashed…. A power he had not felt in the last ten years. _'_ _NO!'_

The world around him fell into darkness as he felt himself falling, but it didn't seem to last long as he felt two arms wrap around him from behind, hands on his chest as a soft voice spoke out to him. "Hush, my child. Rest now, for I will make it all better…." He wasn't sure why the voice spoke in such a familiar tone, but his broken spirit simply accepted the voice's words and closed his eyes, never noticing the arms leave him as he fell into slumber.

_Sylvanas' POV_

Sylvanas couldn't believe the luck they were having, though it was more the lack of, as she and Darbus were now fighting off the skeleton waves by themselves as their casters were down. Eidolon froze and Jaina… she wasn't moving. _'_ _Dammit, I need to break away from here and get those two out. I could use my flare, but that would give our position away to the enemy as well so that's a no go. Come on Sylvanas, think, dammi-?!'_ A pulse of something… dark washed over her, and it seemed that the undead could feel it too. She risked a look at where her friends were…. And what she saw right there was something that she could not explain.

In place of the demoralized Eidolon was apparently a woman, whose robes were a dark grey and purple, hood up that only hid her face, but flowing charcoal hair flowing down her front and glowing emerald eyes were still noticeable. She held no weapon, but the most disturbing about her features was the fact that she had a single purple wing attached to her back, sticking out of her left shoulder blade, that was larger than the woman was tall. And odder still, Kalcifer of all people was actually bowing before her. _'_ _Hold on, that little Imp didn't even do that for Eidolon. So does that mean that… she is the former master of his new summons?'_ Speaking of, she could not see any trace of Eidolon in the area, but returned her focus upon the new arrival. _'_ _Where is Eidolon? Did she do something to him!?'_

The lone woman gazed upon those before her, seeing Darbus and a High elf, along with many skeletons and ghouls. She then rose and swept her right hand across the battle field, draining all of the life force from the Undead forces, leaving just the Meat Wagon and Necromancers, who were only spared in part of being out of her 'range.' With the gathered life energy, it was shifted to her left arm, where she began to push it into the prone form of the Sorceress. It took a few seconds before Jaina began coughing and moving, sitting herself upright before she finally noticed the woman amongst them. She didn't really know what to say; she had seen what Eidolon's Drain Life could do, but the fact that it was possible to redistribute it to others…. Just who was she?

"Darbus." The Voidlord bowed to the woman before moving himself and Sylvanas out of the 'blast radius' as the demon called it, allowing the winged woman to make a slow walk over to the necromancers cowering behind the Meat Wagon. "Open fire!" The wagon unleashed a salvo, its aim true as it went right for the unknown adversary… only for it to go off mere feet from her person as a green glow encompassed her form to block the attack. Another few shots made it clear that it would not work as the dark wizards raised more corpses to fight off the demonic woman. She simply grinned under the hood as she increased her pace until she was short of sprinting towards them.

What happened next could only be described as a slaughter; without a doubt, that woman alone made her spells the most unorthodox that either Jaina or Sylvanas had seen Eidolon use in the past. Shadow bolts that split into thirds and dealt more damage than the last, a disembodied head floating over her that breathed purple fire for only a moment, and a pale/blue stream of light coming from the undead forces were used to even amplify the other spells by draining them of their souls.

It was only after the last one fell to Life Drain that the winged woman turned to the two remaining mortals and her demons. There was a silence that permeated the air before her form was consumed in shadows, then shattering to show Eidolon in her place, covered in blood and out cold as he fell over. Jaina was the first to act by Blinking over to his position and catching him with what strength her body had while Sylvanas made her way over to them as well, the demons apparently having been dismissed during the aftermath. "Jaina. What in the burning hells was that?" The sorceress didn't- no, couldn't- say anything as she too was shocked by the display of power that apparently came from their warlock friend… but then who was that other woman? "We should head back to the base while we still can…" Taking that as their queue to leave, Jaina waved her staff as her remaining mana was put into the short-ranged teleportation spell before disappearing entirely from the battlefield.

Unknowing that one Acolyte managed to hide himself and watch the display of power, then made his way back to Strathome. Master Mal'Ganis must be informed of this development.

When they warped back to the base, they saw that they had just arrived for a massive push from the undead forces to make its push against the defensive line, or what was left of it as Arthas had to pull back all of the remaining forces for one last line. "Light, give me strength." The Prince shot holy light into an undead unit coming towards him, obliterating the unholy power that held it together as he gave a battle cry that motivated his remaining men as they held out for all they were worth.

That is until they heard a horn call from their flank with another war cry of its own. "FOR LORDARON! FOR THE KING!"

For most, this was a cry of hope and faith, that all was not yet lost. For three in particular, however, this was a mix of both good and bad, that a secret may very well be discovered on this day.

Lord Uther Lightbringer, along with a battalion of Knights, had arrived.

 **Again, I must apologize to you good people for making you wait so long on a new post. And yet I'm also touched that more and more people are finding, and enjoying, my story so thank you one and all.**

 **So now Uther has arrived, along with a greater risk of Eidolon being discovered, but for those who have been paying some attention (not being rude here), a secret has already been made known. What exactly that is…. Is for another time. Or perhaps sooner than later.**

 **And now, Mal'Ganis has been made known of this new force that threatens his master's plans; A warlock outside of the Burning Legion's influence. Perhaps he could make use of that information in his plans….. MwaHAHAHAHHAHAHA!**

 **Anyways, as usual, if you like this story then please don't hesitate to leave a comment down below but don't flame the story plz nobody likes a hater. If you don't like it then don't read it then.**

 **As from the wise words of one Monty Oum:**

 ** _I believe that the human spirit is indomitable. If you endeavor to achieve, it will happen given enough resolve. It may not be immediate, and often your greater dreams is something you will not achieve within your own lifetime. The effort you put forth to anything transcends yourself, for there is no futility even in death._**

 **Let us never forget that, as he taught all of us a valuable lesson even with such a short life.**

 **Sincerely,**

 **Ninetails927**


	11. Q&Q, The Culling, and Is That?

Chapter X: Q&Q, The Culling, and is that…?

The battle had ended in Alliance victory, but with a heavy price; as the undead horde sent all they had and then some to Hearthglen, the exhaustion on the defenders were taking its toll and ending the lives of many footmen and archers, whom were defending the priests that tried to keep everyone alive. However, they too began to tire and were forced to fight, which wasn't as effective but with nonstop healing left and right they didn't have much choice. Regardless, the soldiers were asked to take a very much needed rest back at the barracks as other matters were addressed.

And from there, things went south between the trio of friends and a very pissed off Arthas.

The second he woke up, Eidolon wished he hadn't as he felt a new kind of pain in the form of a mail-encased fist finding its way to his head, leaving him to writhe on the ground as tensions now ran at an all-time high. Luckily no more came to pass as the Crown Prince was dissuaded from further assault via and arrow trained at his skull thanks to the Windrunner. Jaina, ever trying to be the voice of reason for everyone, was nearing the end of her patience for her former lover's spontaneous hostilities. "Arthas! What do you think you're doing?! He's hurt already as it is, can't you see that?" Arthas didn't seem to hear her anymore as he remained solely focused on the downed warlock and was reaching for his hefty hammer-

Only to be stopped by his mentor. "ARTHAS! Stand down. Now!" No one moved for what felt like hours until finally, the human prince stepped back, letting Jaina tend to the new bleeding head wound and Sylvanas to…. Well actually, she had absolutely NO intention of lowering her guard any time soon after the spontaneous attack done on her… friend. Yea, that's the word she was looking for. "Now then," the Lightbringer looked between the two parties with a tired sigh. "What exactly caused this?"

Elsewhere, however, a similar conversation was going on….

"What do you MEAN you FAILED?!" A lone acolyte survivor was pinned up against a stone wall, his head ringing from when his master threw him there in his outrage. Mal'Ganis was one that was hard to please, but VERY easy to enrage when plans fall apart in a way he did not intend. Yes, the Dreadlord did want Arthas to cut a bloody swathe through his army, and the man's own people in the process, all in his rage of having his people manipulated. However, the caravan party falling was NOT a variable he had foreseen, nor desired, which is where we are now.

"Master, please, I can expla-AUGH!" Bone had been broken by now, especially if his mangled left arm had anything to say about it. "EXPLAIN!? How would one explain how a simple operation like the caravan providing support behind YOUR lines getting destroyed?" Another bone bit the dust, as a rib threatened to puncture his left lung. "There was an unknown variable, even to us, amongst the Alliance." His right arm joined the growing list of broken things he'd like fixe- oh, wait, and add his left leg too. "Impossible! You dare to have the GALL to say that I, Mal'Ganis, had FAILED to foresee something?! What could I have possibly-?"

At this point the Acolyte didn't care if he died; whatever would make the pain stop, even death, would suffice right now. "THEY HAD DEMONS!" Those three words stopped everything around them, well, except those already undead, but still it had the effect. He silently waited for the coming death that would take away his pain…. Only for nothing to happen. "….. go on." It seemed that his Master was curious about why those three words and found that his meager life had some value… or at least the information did.

"…I see." Uther had been told everything by the collaboration between Jaina and Sylvanas, as when Eidolon tried he was shot down almost immediately by the Crown Prince, whom hadn't let go of his hefty hammer just yet and was making the Ranger-General more and more tempted to just let her arrow 'slip' out of her grip and have it fly. Of course they didn't exactly say anything about the Voidlord or the warlock's rather… odd transformation. All attention returned to Uther once he had pulled together all he was told.

"While I would say what you did was indeed reckless of you three, I myself would be deemed a hypocrite from when I myself committed to such acts, and as well as the fact that you three had each other's backs with the guidance of a powerful sorceress and Silvermoon's very own Ranger-General. What you did was selfless in all regards and should be proud of what you had accomplished; many more lives were saved than lost, and we shall mourn all those whom fell today. Arthas, you were able to hold out well until I could bring reinforcements. If I hadn't been able to arrive just then-" Arthas, from all of the piling-on rage (for the warlock) and knowing that his people were still suffering from undeath, had snapped. "Look, I did the best that I could Uther! If I had a legion of knights riding behind **my** back I would have-" The Lightbringer cut him off before setting the boy straight. "Now is not the time to be choking on pride! What we've faced here was only the beginning. The undead ranks are bolstered every time one of our warriors falls in battle." The company of three lowered their heads in silence as they prayed that their souls, at the least, were released from their tormentors for every one they themselves struck down.

Arthas turned away from them in anger as he recalled something else. "Then we should strike at their leader! I'll go to Stratholme and kill Mal'Ganis myself if I have to!" The Silver Hand commander chuckled as he reached and patted his gloved hand on the young man's shoulder pad. "Easy, lad. Brave as you are, you can't hope to defeat a man who commands the dead all by yourself." Sylvanas couldn't help the side comment on 'paying to see the prince get knocked around trying', which was followed up by Eidolon swearing that he would bring popcorn for it then if she did. The paladins ignored them in favor of having the younger one marched ahead before stopping. "Then feel free to tag along, Uther. I'm going. With or without you." Watching the Crown Prince run off on his own, Jaina had to stop herself from chasing after him. True, he was a friend once almost a lover even, but the moment he stepped out of her life those doors were forever closed to him. All that mattered now was her friend at her side.

Sighing heavily, he looked to the three remaining members present aside from the now-recovering forces left behind and approached with light radiating from his glove. "Allow me, young sir." A wave of warmth and light washed over the warlock, basking him in its healing energies and soon even stood under his own power. "Thank you, Sir Lightbringer." He bowed, only to have the same armored hand stop him while a chuckle left the elder's lips. "It's quite alright. Although perhaps next time you should be a little more careful on how to throw this next time?" The Javelin was brought to him by two sorceresses, whom retuned it to its rightful owner. "It got close enough that I almost got a shave for free on the side of my head." What energy he had at the moment was soon lost as he sighed heavily- he would need to tweak the runes next time he got back to Dalaran so as to make sure that his next attempt didn't take anyone out by surprise…. Or perhaps he wouldn't have to as that same function could be used in a number of espionages. However, that kind of distance made the recall rune falter due to the maximum distance on his connection to it not matching the distance it could cover.

"Now, if you three will excuse me I need to gather what able-bodied warrior we have left after this and make our advance towards Stratholme as well as ensuring that the civilians you saved make it behind friendly lines. You've all done well for protecting you, I couldn't ask for anything more than to try at the least…" He gave them a bow of his head, which shocked the two magic-wielders though the Ranger-General managed to return it before the Lightbringer marched over to the gathering knights and foot soldiers. "Huh, and here I thought he was a little stricter as commander of the Silver Hand." Jaina smiled as Sylvanas patted his shoulder. "Well, you may not count him out just yet: I think he knows, or at least suspects something. Remember, he's been a part of the Second and some of the First Wars against the Orc Horde, back when their supply for warlocks and Fel energies were abundant and could be felt in the same room as them. We may have to make a quick getaway if things so south." Both 'agents' of the Kirin Tor nodded in agreement before heading back inside to at least get something to eat, as well as question on what had happened earlier.

The acolyte had informed his master of everything that had happened, and then was sent to the Sacrificial Pit to be converted into a Shade for future reconnaissance. A merciful action compared to what other suffered prior to this discovery. However, he would need to converse with his brothers…. But they had their own places to be at and positions to be ready for what was to come next. The discovery of a warlock in this world, something that only their former slaves the Orcs had possession and was controlled over, was now outside of their influence may force their hand. And his power was growing stronger if his age and current arsenal of spells and his two demons were anything to go by.

It would seem that something else was going on when those Orcs were still under their influence… or perhaps it was nothing. The return of the Burning Legion would not be stopped, and the Prince of Lordaron will assist in its downfall. For now the matter of this human warlock was to be put into the back burner until it became a more pressing issue.

He had to prepare the red carpet for the approaching celebrity of course…

The trio of warlock, mage and ranger recovered enough to continue the march towards Stratholme, though they agreed to only remain ahead of Uther but behind Arthas' advance as they had matters they needed to be settled about their last big fight. "So let me get this straight, the moment I blacked out I was replaced by this never-before-seen woman that ended up destroying the rest of that caravan, and then got switched back before we returned to Hearthglen? Kalcifer and Darbus must know something…" He didn't even hesitate to pull upon the connection between himself and the two demons, conjuring them to this plane from the Twisting Nether and were soon moving again. They couldn't afford to be caught in the range of Uther's scouting parties. "Now, I'm pretty certain you both know why you're here."

Kalcifer cackled like a madman before answering. "Of course, of course! We can feel the presence of our poor, sweet Mistress still tied to this plane of existence now that she had surfaced from within." The three mortals (except for the High Elf) looked confused at the joyful but cryptic statement before the Voidlord decided to clarify for them. "Our former Lady had fallen after a great battle that resulted in one of her most cherished possessions being supposedly destroyed, leaving us lost and wandering for a time. But it would seem that even death is a mere setback. You were dying in her arms after that attack and, with her remaining power along with some of our own, forged a soulstone. Normally it would house the soul of the one who makes it and, unless destroyed, would allow its creator to remain tied to this plane of existence. This one was, and still is, a mystery even to us: at death's doorstep you were kept alive long enough for the Kirin Tor to retrieve you… but it costed the Mistress' life to create it. Or so we had thought." The Fel Imp cackled and danced around a bit as he sang his words. "Mistress is truly the best~ mistress is truly the best! HEEheheheheheee~."

They were shocked to hear that this 'Mistress' was not only supposedly equal in power of Gul'Dan if not superior, but she had willingly sacrificed herself to save Eidolon's life after the battle that destroyed his home. Jaina and Sylvanas, however, were more concerned on the matter of 'why' she saved some random boy's life instead of herself…. Though it was made clear now that she was far from truly dead.

The only question now was… would she try and take over their friend now that she has become an active force to be reckoned with?

Not if they had anything to say about it.

The demons weren't having any more questions as they said it was better to 'gather the others' before anything else was explained, so they decided not to push the matter any longer, especially when Kalcifer kept on speaking in cryptic sentences while singing in slight joy of his "Mistress' return." It was during the next morning that they had arrived to Arthas' base camp just outside of Stratholme, where they were shortly joined by Uther the Lightbringer. "I'm glad you could make it, Uther." The Silver Hand commander wasn't in the mood and frowned at the Prince's attitude. "Watch your tone with me, boy. You may be the prince, but I am still your superior as a Paladin!"

The young man bowed his head for only a moment before looking towards the party of three. "As if I could forget. Jaina, Ranger-General, It's good to have you both here. Look, Uther, there's something about the plague you should know…" One of the riflemen came running up to him and pointed out the pile of imported grain… straight from Andorhal being distributed amongst the surrounding villagers. "Oh no." He turned back to his Paladin mentor and informed him of the situation. "We're too late. These people have already been infected! They may look fine now, but it's only a matter of time before they turn into the undead!" He faced the city before coming to a griming conclusion. "This entire city must be purged."

Now that was a drastic solution if any of them had heard one, especially to the trio. Sylvanas at one point may have considered that being the only option in the past, but things had changed when she met the Warlock: she now saw all possible solutions, most never being an ultimatum like she thought prior to their meeting. Somewhere in the back of the Ranger-General's head, she pictured herself being the one to suggest and/or support this Purge instead of standing against it. Some twisted sense of irony, she figured.

"How can you even consider that? There has got to be another way!" Uther couldn't even see this as logical reasoning, to simply condemn an entire city to death if there was a chance to save them, right? Right?

Arthas looked to the man he respected as a superior before 'pleading' his case once more. "Dammit Uther, as your future king I order you to purge this city!"

That did it for the Lightbringer as his patience had finally caved in, a spark of his younger days defying ultimatum orders from a superior. Though fortunately for him this 'boy' was anything but. "You are not my king yet boy! Nor would I obey that command even if you were!"

Arthas looked angry and, though his voice tone dropped, he was heard clearly amongst those present. "Then I must consider this an act of treason." Eidolon's group, having been mostly silent through this exchange, finally decided to speak his mind, much to Jaina's slight dismay- slight considering the situation.

"That's going too far Arthas! It is one thing to want to save the people from turning into undead, but such drastic measures-"

"SILENCE!" The crown prince's voice echoed through the open air before glaring adamantly towards the paladin. "Lord Uther, by my right of succession and the sovereignty of my crown, I hereby relieve you of your command and suspend your paladins from service. And YOU," he turned and pointed to the disguised warlock as he spoke with such venom in his words that a hydra would be proud, "I've dealt with this little game of pretending to be a commander for too long and hereby sentence you to imprisonment! Guards, take him away." Unfortunately for him, he would later come to realize that he had made the worst decision he'd ever make this day. The moment two of his footmen went to seize Eidolon of his freedom they found daggers barely breaking the skin of their exposed throats as ice encased their legs, freezing them in place thanks to the combined efforts of Sylvanas Windrunner and Jaina Proudmoore.

"Go ahead, give me a reason to." The footmen looked to each other and, to the sorceress' relief, dropped their swords so as to not further agitate the female Ranger-General. "Good boys." She put away her twin daggers, though her other rangers still kept their arrows trained on anyone else lacking Uther's banner as a precaution. Paranoia makes one live longer, as they always say. "Since it is clear that _we_ are no longer welcome here, I and my forces shall take our leave. Unless, of course, the Crown Prince of Lordaeron wishes to declare war upon Quel'Thalas **and** the Kirin Tor?"

Arthas was infuriated, firstly he lost support by 'rightfully' removing the presence of the Silver Hand due to their lack of doing the right thing, but now that the High Elves were pulling out it would take longer to pull off the purge. Don't get him wrong, it wasn't impossible to succeed, though he knew that it would take more time to finish this and confront Mal'Ganis. But… "Jaina?"

The Sorceress only stopped, but didn't dare look his way as the rest of her group got ready to pull out. "I can't watch you do this. Goodbye." With her mind and heart resolved, and taking the metaphorical leap to forever be done with what was left of her affection for the man, she walked away from Arthas Menethil once and for all and rejoined her friend/crush.

Something broke in him, but the prince pushed it aside as he turned to the rest of those present. "Those of you who have the will to save this land, follow me! The rest of you… get out of my sight!"

"You've just crossed a terrible threshold, Arthas." With that, Uther the Lightbringer and his Silver Hand left the soon-to-be slaughter behind them, leaving the crown prince to further descend into his own insanity.

Though normally this would leave people to watch the gruesome slaughter to come, an anomaly would draw out those who observed history being made. For when the Commander of Paladins made his way to return to Lordaeron to rescind the prince's authority, he was halted by his three traveling companions. "Ladies Windrunner and Proudmoore? What further business do you have with me must wait, for I have to see to King Terenas about his son's recent actions."

The one in purple robes with green overlapping the Kirin Tor's colors stepped forward and slammed his blade to ground, like he was making a point. "This is more important than that, unless you want Arthas to go and kill off innocent lives?!" That immediately caught the Knight Paladin's attention, and allowed him to continue. "Jaina and I have found a way to identify the plague weaved into the grain and, with a little time, can teach this to the other spell-weavers that can identify if one is infected or not. At least that way, we can save those that can be spared, and hopefully even stop the infection process before it claims them. All we ask is for your support, so I implore you!" He dropped his weapon and got on his hands and knees, bowing before the holy warrior. "Please, help us save what lives we can before anymore are lost to either undeath or Arthas' madness…"

Uther for one could say that, over his years, had learned to be an excellent judge of character, and could tell that his plea to him was genuine… though for some odd reason he couldn't help but notice that, due to their close proximity and with no real threat looming over their persons, feel something familiar about the kind of power he was radiating. Surely it was suppressed, but he could never forget the feeling of this kind of magic back from the Second Great War against the Horde. _'_ _No, it can't be. Surely it must be my nostalgia from back in my days…'_ Shaking off the feeling for now, he lowered to a knee and offered a hand to the young sorcerer. "Perhaps it's either my old age, or feeling like I've seen this kind of thing before, but you have me convinced." He helped the young warlock back to his feet and stood tall before the group. "I, and the Silver Hand, shall join you in your cause, if not to at least preserve any more life before forever lost to the madness going on around here. Though, I do hope that you have a plan to do this, as I am certain that our esteemed prince will not tolerate our presence after our last encounter…"

The trio looked to one another with a knowing smirk before turning back to the Lightbringer. "But of course, Knight commander. We're determined, not suicidal."

Within the western end of Stratholme, The undead forces had received word that prince Arthas had arrived on the outskirts of the city and, as theorized, intended to kill off the citizens to prevent them from 'turning' before the grain ran its course. The foolish boy believes that the entire city has been infected, leaving the Dreadlord to chuckle to himself. "So predictable. True, we only had enough grain for a few homes, but at least this way the desired results shall remain the same. He'll be killing more innocents than undead. Go forth and 'deal' with their outpost, while I ensure that we keep a steady supply…" The people were soon retreating indoors to hide from the monsters coming for them while he personally collected them for… processing. All in all, it was a good day for the Dreadlord Mal'ga-

"My lord, the eastern entrance has been infiltrated and… another force is evacuating the civilians." Wait, what? He was sure that section hadn't been infected yet due to their short supply of grains (due in part to the caravan from a few days ago never making it here), leaving him to personally clear it out later. But was some other force outside of his own and Arthas present to unravel his entire operation here? It was one thing to have the prince enraged enough to chase after him to the northern continent, but this third wheel may actually threaten to derail everything he's been working on. No, that will not do at all, for he would be made a laughing stock from his 'brothers' and then punished by his masters for failing.

"Very well then. Enforce our hold over the East while I entertain our royal guest. Keep a flow of assault teams heading for the prince's outpost as well." "But milord, that will strain our defenses-" The cultist who spoke out was struck down by a green wave, never to rise again as the demon looked to the other workers. "Now."

Three skeletons were shot down by a rain of arrows as another ghoul found itself impaled by ice as the Sorceress and Ranger-General fought side by side with their Warlock as droves of undead came for the lone entrance to the eastern part of the city. "You know, now that they don't have that tainted ground to walk on, they're proving to be a lot easier to manage."

A black mass zipped past her head and struck down another necromancer as Eidolon set another abomination on fire. "I know what you mean, especially now that I can go all out without risk of discovery!" His rune-etched sword cut down another oncoming ghoul as more ice rained from the sky, striking down all that came their way.

"Can you two just focus please?! We're in the middle of a warzone here…" She swung her staff, knocking a zombie's head clean off its shoulders until it went into a nearby barrel. "Also, forty seven!" After a few seconds of taking pleasure from the indignant cries from her companions ("Oh, come on!" "Dammit Jaina!"), they refocused upon another wave of oncoming undead.

The trio's plan consisted of rangers and knights riding around the district and clearing away all of the stragglers while insisting civilians to leave their homes and head for the eastern entryway, where High Elf priests and oncoming sorceresses can search for any signs of infection from the plague. So far no one had to be cut down so that was a good sign that people here weren't all infected. Although they had a few close calls with some undead that were still in hiding so rangers were scouring every possible corner to take them out if need be.

Soon enough though, Bibble and Bobble (whom surprisingly decided to stick with Eidolon's little rag-tag team) were heard half-way across the city laying waste from a safe distance and raining mortar strikes as far as they could target via smoke flares set up by rangers, giving the three defenders some much needed relief after a while. That left one base totaled, but the other was now working with fewer resources and out of mortar range. It was enough so they had to pull out or risk discovery, having done their intended tasks.

This also left Mal'Ganis without escorts on his next run-in with Arthas, whom had him cornered near the heart of the city. "We're going to end this right now, Mal'Ganis. Just you, and me."

The Dreadlord chuckled aloud before staring the prince down with a grin. "Brave words. Unfortunately for you, it won't end here…"

As the trio decided to soon enough split up and look for any survivors near the heart of the major end of the conflict between demon and deranged prince, the warlock found something a little odd, something that looked like a brown ( _'_ _or was it bronze?'_ ) dragon being restrained by a rather odd looking dragon, scales going a dark purple and having a human-like body except for his head looking off as well as his torso having the neck-down dragon's body without wings. He seemed to be the source of purple energy restraining the other, whatever for was beyond his understanding but clearly it wasn't good.

He started off with casting Immolation, alongside the usual curses and even a silencing curse to delay any spells it knew, making quick work of the drake before finally shoving Javelin through its skull, though it took a lot of effort to pull off. Heading over to the trapped dragon, he rose a hand that had rings of rune-etched circles materialize around it and waving it over the magic-enforced prison so it became destroyed, freeing the dragon. The second it was loose, it glowed brightly before its body seemed to shrink down to a much… smaller…

"Phew, that was waaay too close there. Nice to see a friendly face here… or is this the first time we've met?" He could not believe it, that little gnome from all those years ago back in Dalaran… was here? And a dragon no less?! She looked confused as he just stood there shocked still. "What? Is there something on my face? Oh, did I miss something when I shifted?" She looked herself over quickly in a small panick before looked up and recognizing who this human was. "Oh. OH! You're not supposed to know I'm here! Well, no one is really. Not since Nozdormu said that… oh I should really stop talking." She ran into a corner where there was a brief flash of light, making the stunned warlock finally move to follow… only to find her gone. Again.

"Just who is she?" Not intending to find any answers here, plus remembering that he was here on a mission, Eidolon ran back into the slightly burning city of Stratholme to find more innocent people, completely missing the now-scattering pile of sand that would have come from a conjured portal.

 **Ladies and gents, I deeply apologize for not being able to get this out due to my lack of inspiration for some time… that is until I took a look at my email and saw that people were actually liking and even following this story. Got my rear in gear really quick, so here it is and I hope you people continue to like it.**

 **And as an inventive to keep coming back for more, as well as genuinely liking this story, I've decided on this being the first Omake! A little early, but I hope you enjoy it! Keep in mind that, unless stated, all omakes will more than likely take place in the WoW era.**

 **A Hallow's End (A Halloween Special)**

Eidolon was prepared for many a number of things- a horde of demons, undead, dragons, hell even shadows that spawn from negative emotions and time-traveling orcs. But for the absolute life of him, he could never be more unprepared than he was right now…

"I'm telling you, he'd be better off as a Crusader!"

"Oh Please, Proudmoore, you must be deluding yourself. Clearly he'd be better off as Gul'Dan."

"Didn't you get to choose last time?! I believe it's my chance here and I say Crusader!"

"Just because Dalaran's hosting this year-"

Here he was, stuck between a mountain and a free-fall into the abyss, with Arch Mage Jaina Proudmoore and The Banshee Queen Sylvanas Windrunner (another story for another time on that reunion) bickering between each other _once_ _again_ to decide on what their esteemed Warlock would wear this year. Hallow's End was a celebration for the Forsaken finally breaking free from the wretched control of the demented Arthas Menethil turned Lich King… by undergoing a global trick-or-treating contest/tournament/brawlfest between the Horde and Alliance. Seriously, since when did a historical event imply anything about gaining/buying/stealing candy!? It never made sense to him, as he'd then be stuck between these two as they got him in some kind of ridiculous (to him) costume and go out to get roped into killing the Headless Horseman who, mind you, rides around on a flying (and also headless) horse, laughing like a madman and sets homes on fire…. without causing real property damage. It got annoying after repeating that for three years so he was hoping that the thing gave up after the last 42 deaths but he had his doubts.

"- and since WHEN did you become the queen of the bi-"

 _'_ _Aaaand we're done.'_ "Alright, that's enough, both of you!" A pair of blue and glowing red eyes looked over to ominous green, whom was acquiring a twitch due to agitation, finally bringing silence over the overly-large shopping district in the floating city of Dalaran. They had been stuck there, picking out from a number of options the 'right' one for this year, however their bickering just had to continue for another year on the matter which one to go with. Even though it wasn't for themselves…

"And what about you two? Have you made any decision on what'd you dress up as… or did you almost forget again?" This was almost a well-scripted routine they had going: They'd pick something for him, bicker with their 'nemesis' about it, then completely forget about choosing one for themselves until the last minute. This time however, he'd save them the week of not finding the right disguises this time, and himself from having to put up with it. The two looked between themselves and smirked before nodding in unison. An action that made the Warlock truly fear for his life now as he tried to make a run for it… only for two different hands to grab an arm each and slowly drag him along. "Oh, don't you worry, though this time we have more options so…" "We were hoping that you'd help up decide on what to wear. We appreciate the assistance on the matter." The young man was now screaming bloody murder as he was dragged away, calling out for anyone to save him only to receive looks of pity or suppressed laughter.

In a nearby darkened alley, a fully robed woman whose hood was still up though black hair still went out from it looked on with slight sorrow, before looking down at the bag with the costume she had picked out. "Oooh, and here I was almost ready to finally give him this…. Well, I still have until the end of the week." Inside the bag was a set up for an adult-sized 'Murky the Murlock' costume, fish and everything…

 **Fin**


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